fun

Pronunciation: /fʌn/

Translate fun | into French | into German | into Italian | into Spanish

Definition of fun

noun

[mass noun]

enjoyment, amusement, or light-hearted pleasure:the children were having fun in the play area
a source of fun:people-watching is great fun
playfulness or good humour:she’s full of fun
behaviour or an activity that is intended purely for amusement and should not be interpreted as having any serious or malicious purpose:the column’s just a bit of fun

adjective

informal

amusing, entertaining, or enjoyable:it was a fun evening

verb (funs, funning, funned)

North American informal

joke or tease: [no object]:no need to get sore—I was only funning [with object]:they are just funning you

Phrases

for fun: in order to amuse oneself and not for any more serious purpose: I paint a bit for fun
fun and games: amusing and enjoyable activities:teaching isn’t all fun and games
in fun: not intended seriously; as a joke:remember when you meet the press to say that your speech was all in fun
make fun of: tease, laugh at, or joke about (someone) in a mocking or unkind way: she didn’t even notice he was making fun of her
not much (or a lot of) fun: used to indicate that something strikes one as extremely unpleasant and depressing:it can’t be much fun living next door to him
not one's idea of fun: used to emphasize one’s dislike for an activity or to mock someone else’s liking for it:being stuck behind a desk all day isn’t my idea of fun
what fun!: used to convey that an activity or situation sounds amusing or enjoyable: we’re going to build a snowman—what fun!

Origin:

late 17th century (denoting a trick or hoax): from obsolete fun 'to cheat or hoax', dialect variant of late Middle English fon 'make a fool of, be a fool', related to fon 'a fool', of unknown origin. Compare with fond

The use of fun as an adjective meaning ‘enjoyable,’ as in we had a fun evening, is now established in informal use. The comparative and superlative forms funner and funnest are sometimes used but should be restricted to very informal contexts.

fun in other Oxford dictionaries

Definition of fun in the US English dictionary

Subscriber login

Library card login

Other

fun

noun

adjective

verb (funs, funning, funned)

Phrases

for fun

fun and games

in fun

make fun of

not much (or a lot of) fun

not one's idea of fun

what fun!

Origin:

fun in other Oxford dictionaries

Nearby words

More results for fun

Word of the day

kempt