Definify.com

Webster 1913 Edition

Humor

Hu′mor

,
Noun.
[OE.
humour
, OF.
humor
,
umor
, F.
humeur
, L.
humor
,
umor
, moisture, fluid, fr.
humere
,
umere
, to be moist. See
Humid
.]
[Written also
humour
.]
1.
Moisture, especially, the moisture or fluid of animal bodies, as the chyle, lymph, etc.;
as, the
humors
of the eye, etc.
☞ The ancient physicians believed that there were four humors (the blood, phlegm, yellow bile or choler, and black bile or melancholy), on the relative proportion of which the temperament and health depended.
2.
(Med.)
A vitiated or morbid animal fluid, such as often causes an eruption on the skin.
“A body full of humors.”
Sir W. Temple.
3.
State of mind, whether habitual or temporary (as formerly supposed to depend on the character or combination of the fluids of the body); disposition; temper; mood;
as, good
humor
; ill
humor
.
Examine how your
humor
is inclined,
And which the ruling passion of your mind.
Roscommon.
A prince of a pleasant
humor
.
Bacon.
I like not the
humor
of lying.
Shakespeare
4.
pl.
Changing and uncertain states of mind; caprices; freaks; vagaries; whims.
Is my friend all perfection, all virtue and discretion? Has he not
humors
to be endured?
South.
5.
That quality of the imagination which gives to ideas an incongruous or fantastic turn, and tends to excite laughter or mirth by ludicrous images or representations; a playful fancy; facetiousness.
For thy sake I admit
That a Scot may have
humor
, I’d almost said wit.
Goldsmith.
A great deal of excellent
humor
was expended on the perplexities of mine host.
W. Irving.
Syn. – Wit; satire; pleasantry; temper; disposition; mood; frame; whim; fancy; caprice. See
Wit
.

Hu′mor

,
Verb.
T.
[
imp. & p. p.
Humored
;
p. pr. & vb. n.
Humoring
.]
1.
To comply with the humor of; to adjust matters so as suit the peculiarities, caprices, or exigencies of; to adapt one's self to; to indulge by skillful adaptation;
as, to
humor
the mind
.
It is my part to invent, and the musician's to
humor
that invention.
Dryden.
2.
To help on by indulgence or compliant treatment; to soothe; to gratify; to please.
Syn. – To gratify; to indulge. See
Gratify
.

Webster 1828 Edition

Humor

HU'MOR

,
Noun.
[L. from humeo, to be moist.]
1.
Moisture; but the word is chiefly used to express the moisture or fluids of animal bodies, as the humors of the eye. But more generally the word is used to express a fluid in its morbid or vitiated state. Hence, in popular speech, we often hear it said,the blood is full of humors. But the expression is not technical nor correct.
Aqueous humor of the eye, a transparent fluid, occupying the space between the crystalline lens and the cornea, both before and behind the pupil.
Crystalline humor or lens, a small transparent solid body, of a softish consistence, occupying a middle position in the eye, between the aqueous and vitreous humors, and directly behind the pupil. It is of a lenticular form, or with double convex surfaces, and is the principal instrument in refracting the rays of light, so as to form an image on the retina.
Vitreous humor of the eye, a fluid contained in the minute cells of a transparent membrane, occupying the greater part of the cavity of the eye, and all the space between the crystalline and the retina.
2.
A disease of the skin; cutaneous eruptions.
3.
Turn of mind; temper; disposition, or rather a peculiarity of disposition often temporary; so called because the temper of mind has been supposed to depend on the fluids of the body. Hence we say, good humor; melancholy humor; peevish humor. Such humors, when temporary, we call freaks, whims, caprice. Thus a person characterized by good nature may have a fit of ill humor; and an ill natured person may have a fit of good humor. So we say, it was the humor of the man at the time; it was the humor of the multitude.
4.
That quality of the imagination which gives to ideas a wild or fantastic turn, and tends to excite laughter or mirth by ludicrous images or representations. Humor is less poignant and brilliant than wit; hence it is always agreeable. Wit,directed against folly, often offends by its severity; humor makes a man ashamed of his follies, without exciting his resentment. Humor may be employed solely to raise mirth and render conversation pleasant, or it may contain a delicate kind of satire.
5.
Petulance; peevishness; better expressed by ill humor.
Is my friend all perfection? has he not humors to be endured?
6.
A trick; a practice or habit.
I like not the humor of lying.

HU'MOR

,
Verb.
T.
To gratify by yielding to particular inclination, humor,wish or desire; to indulge by compliance. We sometimes humor children to their injury or ruin. The sick,the infirm, and the aged often require to be humored.
1.
To suit; to indulge; to favor by imposing no restraint, and rather contributing to promote by occasional aids. We say, an actor humors his part, or the piece.
It is my part to invent,and that of the musicians to humor that invention.

Definition 2024

Humor

Humor

See also: humor and humör

German

Noun

Humor m ‎(genitive Humors, plural Humore)

  1. humor (something funny)

Declension

Usage notes

The plural is used rarely.

Derived terms

External links

humor

humor

See also: Humor and humör

English

Noun

humor ‎(usually uncountable, plural humors)

  1. American spelling of humour
    He was in a particularly vile humor that afternoon.‎
    • 1763, Antoine-Simon Le Page du Pratz, History of Louisiana (PG), page 40:
      For some days a fistula lacrymalis had come into my left eye, which discharged an humour, when pressed, that portended danger.
    • 1898, Winston Churchill, chapter 8, in The Celebrity:
      The humor of my proposition appealed more strongly to Miss Trevor than I had looked for, and from that time forward she became her old self again; for, even after she had conquered her love for the Celebrity, the mortification of having been jilted by him remained.

Verb

humor ‎(third-person singular simple present humors, present participle humoring, simple past and past participle humored)

  1. American spelling of humour
    I know you don't believe my story, but humor me for a minute and imagine it to be true.

Anagrams

Asturian

Noun

humor m ‎(plural humores)

  1. mood (mental state)
  2. humour

Catalan

Noun

humor m ‎(plural humors)

  1. humour

Czech

Pronunciation

Noun

humor m

  1. humor (US), humour (UK) (source of amusement)

Derived terms

Danish

Noun

humor c (singular definite humoren, not used in plural form)

  1. humour (amusement)

Declension

Dutch

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ˈɦymɔr/
  • Hyphenation: hu‧mor

Etymology

From English humor (US), from Old French humor ‎(“bodily fluid”), from Latin humor. See also: humore, humoor, humoristisch, and humuer.

The meaning of humor as in "a sense of amusement" entered Dutch from the US spelling of humour around ~1839.

Noun

humor m ‎(plural humoren or humores)

  1. (uncountable) humour (sense of amusement)
  2. (countable, archaic) humour (bodily fluid) [from the 15th c.]

Hungarian

Etymology

From Latin humor.[1]

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): [ˈhumor]
  • Hyphenation: hu‧mor

Noun

humor ‎(plural humorok)

  1. humour, humor

Declension

Inflection (stem in -o-, back harmony)
singular plural
nominative humor humorok
accusative humort humorokat
dative humornak humoroknak
instrumental humorral humorokkal
causal-final humorért humorokért
translative humorrá humorokká
terminative humorig humorokig
essive-formal humorként humorokként
essive-modal — —
inessive humorban humorokban
superessive humoron humorokon
adessive humornál humoroknál
illative humorba humorokba
sublative humorra humorokra
allative humorhoz humorokhoz
elative humorból humorokból
delative humorról humorokról
ablative humortól humoroktól
Possessive forms of humor
possessor single possession multiple possessions
1st person sing. humorom humoraim
2nd person sing. humorod humoraid
3rd person sing. humora humorai
1st person plural humorunk humoraink
2nd person plural humorotok humoraitok
3rd person plural humoruk humoraik

Derived terms

(Compound words):

References

  1. ↑ Tótfalusi István, Idegenszó-tár: Idegen szavak értelmező és etimológiai szótára. Tinta Könyvkiadó, Budapest, 2005, ISBN 963 7094 20 2

Latin

Alternative forms

Etymology

Alternative spelling of ūmor found in the later Roman Empire, when the letter h had already become silent.

Pronunciation

  • (Classical) IPA(key): /ˈuː.mor/, [ˈuː.mɔr]

Noun

hūmor m ‎(genitive hūmōris); third declension

  1. liquid, fluid, humour

Inflection

Third declension.

Case Singular Plural
nominative hūmor hūmōrēs
genitive hūmōris hūmōrum
dative hūmōrī hūmōribus
accusative hūmōrem hūmōrēs
ablative hūmōre hūmōribus
vocative hūmor hūmōrēs

Descendants

Verb

humor

  1. first-person singular present passive indicative of humō

References

Norwegian Bokmål

Etymology

From Latin humor, via German Humor and English humour or humor

Noun

humor m ‎(definite singular humoren)

  1. humour (UK) or humor (US)

Derived terms

References

Norwegian Nynorsk

Etymology

From Latin humor, via German Humor and English humour or humor

Noun

humor m ‎(definite singular humoren)

  1. humor (US) or humour (UK)

Derived terms

References

Old French

Alternative forms

Noun

humor m, f

  1. humor (One of four fluids that were believed to control the health and mood of the human body.)

Polish

Etymology

From German Humor, ultimately from Latin. See humor for more.

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): [ˈxumɔr]

Noun

humor m inan

  1. humour
  2. mood (mental state)

Declension

Portuguese

Etymology

From Old Portuguese umor, humor, from Latin hūmor ‎(“humour, fluid”).

Pronunciation

  • (Paulista) IPA(key): /u.ˈmoɹ/
  • (South Brazil) IPA(key): /u.ˈmoɻ/
  • (Portugal) IPA(key): /u.ˈmoɾ/

Noun

humor m (plural humores)

  1. mood (mental state)
  2. humour; bodily fluid
  3. (historical) humour (one of the four basic bodily fluids in humourism)
  4. humour (quality of being comical)

Quotations

For usage examples of this term, see Citations:humor.

Synonyms

Hyponyms

  • (basic bodily fluids): fleuma, bile amarela, bile negra, sangue

Derived terms

Related terms

Serbo-Croatian

Etymology

From English humor.

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /xǔmor/
  • Hyphenation: hu‧mor

Noun

hùmor m ‎(Cyrillic spelling ху̀мор)

  1. (uncountable) humor

Declension

Spanish

Noun

humor m ‎(plural humores)

  1. mood
  2. humor

Related terms

Swedish

Etymology

Originally from Latin humor ‎(“fluid”), having bodily fluids in good balance, as used in humör ‎(“mood, temper”). The joking sense was derived in England in Shakespeare's time and has been used in Swedish since 1812.

Pronunciation

Noun

humor c

  1. humour (a sense of making jokes)

Declension

Related terms

References

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): [huˈmoːɐ̯]

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