humor

UK: /ˈhjuːmə^r/ US: /ˈhjumɚ/ ,(hyo̅o̅′mər or, often, yo̅o̅′-)

WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2025

hu•mor /ˈhyumɚ/   n. [uncountable]

1. a funny, comic, or absurd quality causing amusement.
2. the ability or faculty of seeing and knowing what is amusing or comical, and being able to express it or appreciate it:
   a keen sense of humor.
3. something that causes humor:
   The story had no humor in it.
4. mental temperament;
   a temporary mood or frame of mind:
   in sulky humor; in good humor.

v. [~ + object]

5. to go along with the humor or mood of (someone) in order to soothe, cheer up, calm down, etc.:
   to humor a child.

Also,[esp. Brit.,] ˈhu•mour.  hu•mor•ist, n. [countable]
hu•mor•less, adj. 
hu•mor•less•ly, adv. 
hu•mor•less•ness, n. [uncountable]

WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2025

hu•mor  (hyo̅o̅′mər or, often, yo̅o̅′-), n. 

1. a comic, absurd, or incongruous quality causing amusement:
   the humor of a situation.
2. the faculty of perceiving what is amusing or comical:
   He is completely without humor.
3. an instance of being or attempting to be comical or amusing;
   something humorous:
   The humor in his joke eluded the audience.
4. the faculty of expressing the amusing or comical:
   The author's humor came across better in the book than in the movie.
5. comical writing or talk in general;
   comical books, skits, plays, etc.
6. humors, peculiar features;
   oddities;
   quirks:
   humors of life.
7. mental disposition or temperament.
8. a temporary mood or frame of mind:
   The boss is in a bad humor today.
9. a capricious or freakish inclination;
   whim or caprice;
   odd trait.
10. Physiology (in medieval physiology) one of the four elemental fluids of the body, blood, phlegm, black bile, and yellow bile, regarded as determining, by their relative proportions, a person's physical and mental constitution.
11. Physiology, Botany, Zoology any animal or plant fluid, whether natural or morbid, as the blood or lymph.
12. Idioms out of humor, displeased;
    dissatisfied;
    cross:
    The chef is feeling out of humor again and will have to be treated carefully.

v.t. 

13. to comply with the humor or mood of in order to soothe or make content or more agreeable:
    to humor a child.
14. to adapt or accommodate oneself to.

Also,[esp. Brit.,] humour. 

• Latin (h)ūmōr- (stem of (h)ūmor) moisture, fluid (medical Latin: body fluid), equivalent. to (h)ūm(ēre) to be wet (see humid) + -ōr- -or¹
• Anglo-French
• Middle English (h)umour 1300–50

hu′mor•ful, adj. 
hu′mor•less, adj. 
hu′mor•less•ly, adv. 
hu′mor•less•ness, n. 
Synonyms

• 4. Humor, wit refer to an ability to perceive and express a sense of the clever or amusing.
  Humor consists principally in the recognition and expression of incongruities or peculiarities present in a situation or character. It is frequently used to illustrate some fundamental absurdity in human nature or conduct, and is generally thought of as more kindly than wit:
  a genial and mellow type of humor; his biting wit.
  Wit is a purely intellectual manifestation of cleverness and quickness of apprehension in discovering analogies between things really unlike, and expressing them in brief, diverting, and often sharp observations or remarks.
• 9. fancy, vagary.
• 13. Humor, gratify, indulge imply attempting to satisfy the wishes or whims of (oneself or others).
  To humor is to comply with a mood, fancy, or caprice, as in order to satisfy, soothe, or manage:
  to humor an invalid.
  To gratify is to please by satisfying the likings or desires:
  to gratify someone by praising him.
  Indulge suggests a yielding to wishes that perhaps should not be given in to:
  to indulge an unreasonable demand; to indulge an irresponsible son.

Antonyms

• 13. discipline, restrain.

WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2025

hu•mour  (hyo̅o̅′mər), n., v.t., [Chiefly Brit.]

1. British Terms, Pronouns humor.

Usage

See -or¹. 

Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::

humour, humor / ˈhjuːmə/ noun

1. the quality of being funny
2. Also called: sense of humour the ability to appreciate or express that which is humorous
3. situations, speech, or writings that are thought to be humorous
4. a state of mind; temper; mood
5. (in combination): ill humour, good humour
6. temperament or disposition
7. a caprice or whim
8. any of various fluids in the body, esp the aqueous humour and vitreous humour
9. Also called: cardinal humour any of the four bodily fluids (blood, phlegm, choler or yellow bile, melancholy or black bile) formerly thought to determine emotional and physical disposition
10. out of humour ⇒ in a bad mood

verb (transitive)

1. to attempt to gratify; indulge: he humoured the boy's whims
2. to adapt oneself to: to humour someone's fantasies

Etymology: 14th Century: from Latin humor liquid; related to Latin ūmēre to be wet, Old Norse vökr moist, Greek hugros wet

ˈhumourless, ˈhumorless adjective