sardonic

English

WOTD – 24 April 2007

Etymology

From French sardonique, from Latin sardonius, from Ancient Greek σαρδόνιος (sardónios), alternative form of σαρδάνιος (sardánios, “bitter or scornful laughter”), which is often cited as deriving from the Sardinian plant (Ranunculus sardous or possibly Oenanthe crocata), known as either σαρδάνη (sardánē) or σαρδόνιον (sardónion). When eaten, it would cause the eater's face to contort in a look resembling scorn (generally followed by death). It might also be related to σαίρω (saírō, “I grin”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /saːˈdɔnɪk/
• IPA^(key): /sɑːˈdɒnɪk/
• IPA^(key): /sɑɹˈdɑːnɪk/

• Audio (US):

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• Audio (AU):

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• Rhymes: -ɒnɪk

Adjective

sardonic (comparative more sardonic, superlative most sardonic)

1. Scornfully mocking or cynical.

   He distances himself from people with his nasty, sardonic laughter.

   • November, 1628, Henry Wotton, letter to Jack Dinely

     strained, sardonic smiles

   • 1795–1797, Edmund Burke, “(please specify |letter=1 to 4)”, in [Letters on a Regicide Peace], London: [Rivington]:

     the scornful, ferocious, sardonic grin of a bloody ruffian

2. Disdainfully or ironically humorous.
   • 1979, Carl Deroux, editor, Studies in Latin Literature and Roman History [Collection Latomus; 164], volume 1, Brussels: Latomus, →OCLC, page 111:

     Another manifestation, significantly reaching its apogee in the midst of Antonine virtues, was the growing popularity of adoxographical exercises. Mock panegyrics were dashed off, not just by sardonic intellectuals such as Lucian, but also by trained courtiers and polished encomiasts of the stamp of [Marcus Cornelius] Fronto.

Related terms

• Sardonian
• sarcastic

Translations

scornfully mocking

• Bulgarian: язвителен (bg) (jazvitelen)
• Catalan: sardònic
• Dutch: sardonisch (nl)
• Finnish: häijy (fi), ivallinen (fi)
• French: sardonique (fr)
• German: hämisch (de), mokant (de)
• Greek: σαρδόνιος (el) (sardónios)
• Italian: sardonico (it), sarcastico (it), sprezzante (it)
• Norwegian: bitter (no)

  Bokmål: sardonisk

• Persian: زهرخنده (fa) (zahrxande)
• Polish: sardoniczny (pl)
• Portuguese: sardónico (pt) (Portugal), sardônico (pt) (Brazil)
• Russian: сардони́ческий (ru) (sardoníčeskij)
• Slovene: sardóničen
• Spanish: sardónico (es)
• Swedish: bitter (sv), sardonisk (sv)
• Turkish: hakaret dolu, horlayıcı, küçümseyen, küçümseyici (tr), acı (tr)
• Ukrainian: сардоні́чний (sardoníčnyj)

ironically humorous

• Bulgarian: подигравателен (bg) (podigravatelen)
• French: sardonique (fr)
• German: bitter (de), sarkastisch (de), sardonisch (de)
• Italian: sardonico (it)
• Polish: sardoniczny (pl)
• Portuguese: sardónico (pt) (Portugal), sardônico (pt) (Brazil)
• Slovene: sardóničen
• Spanish: sardónico (es)
• Swedish: ondskefull (sv)
• Turkish: alaylı (tr)

Anagrams

• Scardino

Romanian

Etymology

Borrowed from French sardonique, from Latin sardonicus.

Adjective

sardonic m or n (feminine singular sardonică, masculine plural sardonici, feminine and neuter plural sardonice)

1. sardonic

Declension

Declension of sardonic

		singular			plural
		masculine	neuter	feminine	masculine	neuter	feminine
nominative/ accusative	indefinite	sardonic		sardonică	sardonici	sardonice
	definite	sardonicul		sardonica	sardonicii	sardonicele
genitive/ dative	indefinite	sardonic		sardonice	sardonici	sardonice
	definite	sardonicului		sardonicei	sardonicilor	sardonicelor