Meanings
comparative more tongue-in-cheek · superlative most tongue-in-cheek · alternative tongue in cheek
- idiomaticNot intended seriously; jocular or humorous.
He gave a tongue-in-cheek explanation of why the sky was blue, offering a theory about some primordial discount on light blue paint.
2 more examples
It was in this era, too, that author and Scotland the Brave songwriter Cliff Hanley penned The Glasgow Underground, a tongue-in-cheek love letter to the Subway in song.
2021 December 29, Conrad Landin, “Glasgow Subway: a city institution”, in RAIL, number 947, page 45The tongue-in-cheek sendup wasn’t far from Silicon Valley’s reality.
2025 August 4, Mike Isaac, “A.I. Has Ushered in Silicon Valley’s ‘Hard Tech’ Era”, in The New York Times, archived from the original on 04 Aug 2025Synonyms: witty, amusing, bright, diverting, droll, entertaining, humorous, jocose
alternative tongue in cheek
- not comparableobsoleteWith contempt.
Synonyms & antonyms
adjectiveNot intended seriously; jocular or humorous.
More synonyms by meaning
adverbin a bantering fashion
adverbnot seriously
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
This phrase alludes to the facial expression created by putting one's tongue in one's cheek. The term first appeared in print in 1828, but it isn't entirely clear that it was used with the modern, rather than a literal, sense. A later citation from Richard Barham is unambiguous.
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Dutch met een knipoog
- met een knipoogwitty, jocular, humorous
French second degré
- second degréwitty, jocular, humorous
German augenzwinkernd, mit einem Augenzwinkern
- augenzwinkerndwitty, jocular, humorous
- mit einem Augenzwinkernwitty, jocular, humorous
Greek αστείος, χιουμοριστικός
- αστείος (asteíos)witty, jocular, humorous
- χιουμοριστικός (chioumoristikós)witty, jocular, humorous
Hungarian kaján
- kajánwitty, jocular, humorous
Indonesian jenaka
- jenakawitty, jocular, humorous
Polish z przymrużeniem oka
- z przymrużeniem okawitty, jocular, humorous
Russian насме́шливый, лука́вый
- насме́шливый (nasméšlivyj)witty, jocular, humorous
- лука́вый (lukávyj)witty, jocular, humorous
- шутливый (šutlivyj)witty, jocular, humorous
Spanish irónico, burlón
- irónicowitty, jocular, humorous
- burlónwitty, jocular, humorous
- de bromawitty, jocular, humorous
- como chistewitty, jocular, humorous
Swedish med glimten i ögat
- med glimten i ögatwitty, jocular, humorous
Cite this entry
tongue-in-cheek. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/tongue-in-cheek
“tongue-in-cheek.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/tongue-in-cheek. Accessed November 5, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “tongue-in-cheek,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/tongue-in-cheek.
Source: tongue-in-cheek on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.