irrision

I1R1R1I1S1I1O1N1
/ɪˈɹɪʒən/

noun

The act of laughing at another; derision.

OriginLatin irrīsiō →
Scrabble 8
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Meanings

nounirrision (countable and uncountable, plural irrisions)

plural irrisions

  1. countableobsoleteuncountableThe act of laughing at another; derision.

    This being spoken scopticè, or by way of irrision.

    [1611?], Homer, “(please specify |book=I to XXIV)”, in Geo[rge] Chapman, transl., The Iliads of Homer Prince of Poets. […], London: […] Nathaniell Butter, →OCLC; republished as The Iliads of Homer, Prince of Poets, […], new edition, volume (please specify the book number), London: Charles Knight and Co., […], 1843, →OCLC
    1 more example

    From thence he was carried back to Jerusalem, first to Annas, then to Caiaphas, and (as late as it was) then he was examined and buffeted, and delivered over to the custody of those officers from whom he received all those irrisions […]

    1630, John Donne, Sermon Preached at Whitehall

Origin

  1. Latinirrīsiō
  2. Englishirrision

From Latin irrīsiō, from irrīdēre (“to laugh at”); ir- (“in”) + rīdeō (“to laugh”): compare French irrision.

More words from Latin

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

irrision. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/irrision

MLA

“irrision.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/irrision. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “irrision,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/irrision.

Source: irrision on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.