Hilarious means extremely funny, causing a lot of laughter. It describes something much more amusing than just slightly funny.
From Latin “hilaris,” meaning cheerful or merry, from Greek “hilaros,” cheerful. It originally referred to cheerfulness in general before focusing on laugh-out-loud funniness.
Calling something “hilarious” is like giving it a top-tier comedy rating—it’s not just amusing, it’s laugh‑till‑you‑can’t‑breathe territory. The word is related to “hilarity,” that wild, contagious laughter that spreads through a group. Your brain rewards these moments with feel-good chemicals, which is why shared hilarity bonds people so quickly.
Judgments of what is ‘hilarious’ have often reflected gendered norms, with women comedians and humor styles associated with women dismissed as less funny. Humor has also been used to mask sexist jokes as ‘just hilarious,’ minimizing harm.
Avoid calling sexist or gender-stereotyping jokes ‘hilarious’; instead, evaluate whether the humor punches up or down and who it targets.
["very funny","amusing","witty","clever"]
When discussing comedy, acknowledge women and gender-diverse comedians who have expanded what audiences consider hilarious and challenged sexist norms in humor.
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