27 December 2013

facetious

[fuh-see-shuhs]

adjective

1. not meant to be taken seriously or literally: a facetious remark.
2. amusing; humorous.
3. lacking serious intent; concerned with something nonessential, amusing, or frivolous: a facetious person.

Origin:

1585–95; facete + -ious; see facetiae

Related forms
fa·ce·tious·ly, adverb
fa·ce·tious·ness, noun
non·fa·ce·tious, adjective
non·fa·ce·tious·ly, adverb
non·fa·ce·tious·ness, noun

Can be confused: facetious, factious, factitious, fictional, fictitious.

Synonyms
2. humorous

Anagram

cause of it

Today’s aphorism

If every man would help his neighbour, no man would be without help.

– Bruce Lee

On this day

27 December 1822 – birth of Louis Pasteur, French bacteriologist, one of the founders of microbiology. Invented the process for preventing milk and wine from causing sickness, known as pasteurisation. (Not entirely fool-proof, as over-imbibing wine still seems to cause sickness in some). Died 28 September 1895.

27 December 1979 – Soviet Union overthrows the Afghan government, replacing President Hufizullah Amin with Babrak Karmal.

27 December 2007 – Benazir Bhutto, former Pakistani Prime Minister, is assassinated by a suicide bomber immediately after shots were fired at her. Bhutto was the first female head of an Islamic nation. The bombing killed 24 other people.