sick joke
Definition
Noun: A joke that is considered to be in very poor taste, often because it deals with a serious, tragic, or offensive subject (such as disease, death, or disaster) in a humorously insensitive way.
Usage
The term "sick joke" is used to describe a specific type of humor that many people find disturbing or offensive rather than funny. It highlights the joke's content as being morally or emotionally unacceptable.
Examples
- He told a sick joke about the recent earthquake that made everyone uncomfortable.
- I don't appreciate sick jokes that make light of terminal illness.
- Some comedians are known for pushing boundaries with what others would call sick jokes.
Advanced Usage
- The phrase can be used metaphorically to describe a situation that is so absurdly bad it seems like a cruel trick.
- This whole situation is a sick joke. How can they fire half the staff right before the holidays?
Variants and Related Words
- Gallows humor: A specific type of dark humor arising from stressful, traumatic, or life-threatening situations, often used as a coping mechanism. While related, "gallows humor" can have a more sympathetic connotation than "sick joke."
- Dark humor: A broader category of comedy that finds humor in grim, morbid, or taboo subjects. A "sick joke" is a specific instance of dark humor that crosses a line for many people.
Synonyms
- Tasteless joke
- Offensive joke
- Morbid joke
Related Idioms
- Beyond a joke: Used to describe a situation that has stopped being funny and has become serious or annoying. This idiom shares the sense of something being unacceptable, though not necessarily related to humor.
- His constant lateness is now beyond a joke.
Noun
-
a joke in bad taste
