Words / B2

y-RON-ikl-ee/aɪˈrɒnɪkli/

Ironically flags a clash with expectation: ironically, the assembly used an unsourced slide. Ironically is the adverb of ironic. Use it when the contrast is real, not as a sentence adverb meaning “by the way”. Register: comment and reviews. Do not start every paragraph with ironically.

Meaning

In an ironic way; used when the opposite of what you expect happens.

Examples

• “Ironically, the anti-plagiarism assembly used an unsourced slide.”
• “The policy, ironically, hit the pupils it claimed to help, which is the comment-page sense.”

Good to know

ironically, + clause. Adjective: ironic. Noun: irony. Comment and literature. True reversal of expectation — not a filler adverb.

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