1

To be specific, this statement refers to a phrase in which the writer/speaker's intention of being sarcastic is not disclosed to the reader/listener (deliberately or accidentally). The effect strongly depends on the vocal inflection placed on the statement. Is there a better word or phrase than "ambiguous sarcasm"?

EDIT:

This includes the case in which the speaker is unsure about his or her intentions, leaving the implication of the statement for interpretation.

AnimatedRNG
  • 175
  • See http://english.stackexchange.com/questions/26621/what-are-the-similarities-and-differences-between-irony-and-sarcasm – adj7388 Sep 02 '14 at 22:25
  • Probably: Disguised sarcasm/scorn. –  Sep 02 '14 at 22:26
  • It's not quite "disguised" though. It could be that the speaker deliberately tried to make a statement which could be interpreted either way. Or perhaps the speaker doesn't actually know whether the statement is sarcastic or not. – AnimatedRNG Sep 02 '14 at 22:29
  • Give us an example. – Gary's Student Sep 02 '14 at 22:31
  • 1
    Could 'enigmatic' or 'cryptic' suggest the idea ? –  Sep 02 '14 at 22:33
  • 2
    "That test looks impossible." It could mean that the test was really easy (obvious sarcasm), or that the test was actually hard (no sarcasm). If spoken with the correct inflection, it could be ambiguous whether the test was difficult or not. – AnimatedRNG Sep 02 '14 at 22:35
  • Enigmatic is pretty close. – AnimatedRNG Sep 02 '14 at 22:36
  • How could the speaker not know whether they were being sarcastic or not? Sarcasm implies intention to mock. Either they were unsure about the accuracy of their statement (so not sarcasm) or they were intentionally mocking the test's difficulty (sarcasm). As a listener, maybe I would say that it was a speaker's failed attempt at sarcasm. – 0MM0 Sep 03 '14 at 12:01
  • You could say that a person spoke "dryly". This leans more towards sarcasm, but is not overt. – Liesmith Sep 03 '14 at 18:54
  • It's possible to be ambiguously sarcastic on accident. It usually happens when the speaker doesn't know that much about the topic at hand, and implies uncertainty. However, it's much more common to hear deliberately ambiguous sarcastic comments. In that case, the speaker deliberately leaves the comment up to interpretation. Assuming the test example is intentionally ambiguous sarcasm, it doesn't matter what the speaker was actually thinking -- the statement was designed to be ambiguous. – AnimatedRNG Sep 04 '14 at 22:40

1 Answers1

2

'Droll' (adj) refers to unusual, often sarcastic or dry humor. An example of 'droll' is a wry and sarcastic yet funny comment (Yourdictionary.com). 'Drollerie' (n.) is the noun form. Here's an example from a movie: The British film version of Oscar Wilde's play 'An Ideal Husband'. Friend of the jilted Lord Goring: 'There are plenty of other fish in the sea.' Lord Goring: 'I have no desire to marry a fish.'

user3847
  • 2,495