Bad - taste (adjective): deliberately shocking and offensive - Peter made bad - taste films before directing the Lord of the Rings movies.
Banter (noun): witty conversation - Can you understand the banter between drinkers at the pub yet?
Black comedy (noun): comedy about topics like death, war, illness, etc. - My friends hate black comedies, but I love them.
Caper (noun): a comedy about a crime that goes wrong - Is Fargo a typical crime thriller or a black comedy caper?
Comedy (noun): a novel, TV show or movie that's meant to make us laugh - We could do with a laugh, so let's watch a comedy.
Comical (adjective): strange or silly enough to be funny - It's full of funny characters in comical situations.
Cringe (verb): to react to something that's embarrassing or disturbing - When she vomited on her husband, everyone cringed.
Farce (noun): a comedy of silly or unlikely events - It's an old - fashioned farce about a wedding that goes wrong.
Faux pas (also "gaffe") (noun): something embarrassing that's said or done in a social situation - His worst faux pas was telling the queen a dirty joke.
Gag (noun): a witty joke - Thinking up gags for a movie script isn't easy, you know.
Goofball comedy (noun): a comedy with a very stupid but funny main character - It's a goofball comedy, so it's OK to laugh.
Gross - out (adjective): disgusting enough to make you feel sick - It's a gross - out movie, so your teenage sons will love it.
Humour (also "humor") (noun): the quality that makes something seem funny - She's got a good sense of humour, so I'm sure she'll get the joke.
Inept (adjective): lacking ability, skill or training - Playing with an inept golfer can be very funny, but you mustn't laugh.
Make fun of (verb): to tease, mock or make unkind jokes about someone - Why does your brother always make fun of gay people?
Mockumentary (noun): a comedy that looks like a serious documentary - We just saw this really funny arts mockumentary.
Poke fun at (verb): to make something or someone look silly - Lots of comedians poke fun at politics and make fun of politicians.
Romantic comedy (also "rom com") (noun): a funny love story - My wife loves romantic comedies, but I can't stand them!
Ridiculous (adjective): very silly, or unreasonable enough to make people laugh - You can't swim to China. That's a ridiculous idea!
Satire (noun): a book, play, movie, etc that uses comedy to criticize something - A good satire can change the way you think.
Satirize (verb): to use humour to poke fun at something or someone - I like the way it satirizes lawyers and the legal system.
Screwball comedy (noun): a farcical romantic comedy of the 30s or 40s - I've only seen Cary Grant in screwball comedies.
slapstick (noun): comedy based on sight gags - Those Mr Bean movies are full of slapstick comedy.
Spoof (noun): a funny parody of a movie genre - Is it a horror movie spoof, or just a funny horror movie?
Western (noun): a cowboy movie about the old American West - There were lots of Westerns on TV when I was a kid.
Witty (adjective): clever and funny at the same time - Oscar Wilde was famous for saying witty things.
Doubts on this article
