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Philosophy & ThoughtGreekEnglish

Irony

Meaning the opposite of what is literally said.

The Greek roots

εἰρωνεία
eirōneía
feigned ignorance

Literally: pretended ignorance

The story of the word

An eírōn was a sly under-stater who feigned ignorance — Socrates was the master of this pose.

The same roots elsewhere

Other languages reached for exactly the same Greek pieces.

In a sentence

The irony of the situation wasn't lost on anyone.

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