English Reference
Adjective

ludicrous

adj.
C1 Advanced US /ˈɫudəkɹəs/ UK /lˈuːdɪkɹəs/ lu·di·crous

adj.completely ridiculous or silly in a way that is hard to believe. You use it when something is so foolish that it deserves to be laughed at.

adj.so foolish, unreasonable, or out of place as to be amusing or ridiculous. Often used to describe claims, prices, or situations that lack any logical basis.


SIMPLE

The idea that he could fly was ludicrous.

CONTEXTUAL

The company asked for a ludicrous amount of money for a product that clearly did not work.

COMPLEX

While the initial premise of the film seemed ludicrous, the director managed to ground the story in enough emotional truth to keep the audience engaged until the end.

Usage

Often used predicatively after linking verbs like 'be', 'seem', or 'sound'.

He was involved in every aspect of punk, every character, clothes shop, incident, ludicrous look and iconic gig.

The Guardian· 26 Aug 2026

Learned borrowing from Latin lūdicrus. First attested in 1619.

Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

This entry
Level C1 · Advanced
Frequency Frequent
Updated