Amusing in an odd, quirky, or whimsical way; entertaining because of being unusual or unexpected rather than outright funny.
From Dutch 'drol' or French 'drôle' (funny), possibly from Germanic roots. It entered English in the 1600s and captured a specific type of humor that's more clever than hilarious.
Droll is the adjective of understatement—it describes British humor, deadpan comedy, and that specific laugh that comes from something being absurdly unexpected. It's less 'ha-ha' and more 'oh, that's delightfully ridiculous!'
Complete word intelligence in one call. Free tier — 50 lookups/day.