French Conversation · Level 101
60 words
French word
ubuesque
Pronunciation
IPA/ybyɛsk/
Meaning
- adjectiveabsurd
Example
Cette décision est vraiment ubuesque.
This decision is truly absurd.
More examples
La nouvelle règle ubuesque empêche tout le monde de travailler efficacement.
The new absurd rule prevents everyone from working efficiently.
Core concept
A real-world decision wearing the exaggerated, foolish logic of a cartoon villain.
Common phrases
règle ubuesque
absurd rule
Similar words
absurde: Lacking logical sense and appearing foolish or wildly unreasonable.
surréaliste: Strangely unreal, as if shaped by a dream rather than ordinary life.
grotesque: Both grotesquely exaggerated and oddly funny, with an unsettling effect.
bizarre: Noticeably unlike the ordinary, with a puzzling sense of strangeness.
Definition in French
Qui qualifie une action, une décision ou une situation marquée par une bêtise ou une absurdité exagérée, presque caricaturale.
Word origin
French ubuesque derives from Ubu, the character in Alfred Jarry's 1896 play Ubu roi, with the suffix -esque meaning 'in the style of'.
Usage tips
- Ubuesque belongs especially to formal, journalistic, or critical language and can sound exaggerated in casual conversation.
Other meanings
- ridiculousadjective
- grotesqueadjective
Opposites
- sensésensibleadjective