ludicrous
Americanadjective
adjective
Synonym Usage
See funny 1.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of ludicrous
1610–20; from Latin lūdicrus “sportive,” equivalent to lūdicr(um) “a show, public games” ( lūdi-, stem of lūdere “to play” + -crum noun suffix of instrument or result) + -us -ous
Explanation
Ludicrous things are funny, absurd, or nonsensical. If someone says something silly or far-fetched, you could say "That's ludicrous!" Ludicrous originally meant something that was funny, playful, or joking: a ludicrous comment was just a really funny comment. Over time, ludicrous took on a more negative flavor. Now a ludicrous statement might be funny, but it's also ridiculous, hard to believe, off the wall, or even stupid. When people say "That idea is ludicrous!" it usually means the idea could never happen: the notion is laughable. Saying Neil Armstrong was the third President would be a ludicrous statement.
Vocabulary lists containing ludicrous
A Raisin in the Sun
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The Hunger Games
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Unit 1: Telling Details
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Team Burnham, for their part, dismissed this idea of delay as "absolutely ludicrous".
From BBC ● Jun. 17, 2026
“We would stay out of the fray, play by the rules, ignore the ludicrous attacks and assume that people would discern the truth.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 1, 2026
“It would be ludicrous to say that I’ve got any kind of grip on the complexity or contemporary life in L.A.,”
From Los Angeles Times ● May 26, 2026
“Optical is heading into ludicrous speed,” Mizuho managing director for equity trading Daniel O’Regan said in a note to clients about Monday’s trading action.
From MarketWatch ● May 11, 2026
“This must be the influence of that ludicrous representative of the law. He seems to have turned you against your own child. By the way, he has left, hasn’t he?”
From "A Confederacy of Dunces" by John Kennedy Toole
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
