droll

[ drohl ]

adjective

, droll·er, droll·est.

1. amusing in an odd way; whimsically humorous; waggish.

   Synonyms: witty, odd, diverting

   Antonyms: serious

noun

1. a droll person; jester; wag.

   Synonyms: clown

verb (used without object)

1. Archaic. to jest; joke.

   Synonyms: clown

droll

/ drəʊl /

adjective

1. amusing in a quaint or odd manner; comical

Derived Forms

• ˈdrolly, adverb
• ˈdrollness, noun

Other Words From

• drollness noun
• drolly adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of droll¹

First recorded in 1615–25; from Middle French drolle “pleasant rascal,” perhaps from Middle Dutch drol “elf, goblin, fat little man,” ultimately from Old Norse; troll ²( def )

Word History and Origins

Origin of droll¹

C17: from French drôle scamp, from Middle Dutch: imp

Synonym Study

See amusing.

Example Sentences

Shopping for toys gave my droll winter workdays meaning.

From Salon

She admitted she would invoke the production term “quantizing” during early interviews without knowing its meaning, and flashed a droll smile when asked what distinguishes her solo songs from the Chvrches catalog.

From New York Times

Other influences, like the tastemaking Bay Area band Whirr, drew from similar wells a generation ago — Lu’s droll Instagram handle is still “whirrwhoreforlyfe.”

From Los Angeles Times

The droll side of his personality came out again shortly after he had finished speaking to the media.

From BBC

He also had a droll side, as revealed in this song reconstituted from demos he recorded in 1993; a latter-day band, including Marty Stuart on guitar, now fills out the original tracks.

From New York Times

Related Words

• eccentric
• entertaining
• funny
• humorous
• whimsical