冗談(じょうだん)

じょうだん
noun
joke, jest
informalexpression
1. joke, jest, kidding
Something said or done for amusement; not meant to be taken seriously.
冗談(じょうだん)だよ！
I'm just kidding!
冗談(じょうだん)を言(い)って皆(みんな)を笑(わら)わせた。
I told a joke and made everyone laugh.
冗談(じょうだん)じゃないよ、本当(ほんとう)だって。
I'm not kidding, it's true.
彼(かれ)は冗談(じょうだん)が上手(じょうず)でいつも場(ば)を和(なご)ませてくれる。
He's good at telling jokes and always lightens the mood.
冗談(じょうだん)のつもりで言(い)ったのに、相手(あいて)を傷(きず)つけてしまって反省(はんせい)した。
I meant it as a joke, but I ended up hurting the other person's feelings and regretted it.

冗談(じょうだん) refers to jokes or kidding around.

Common expressions

Register

冗談(じょうだん) is neutral and can be used in most situations. For more casual speech, ジョーク (from English "joke") is also common.

Watch out

"冗談(じょうだん)を作(つく)る" is unnatural. Use "冗談(じょうだん)を言(い)う" (to tell a joke) instead.

Related Words

Antonym: 本気(ほんき) (seriousness)
Synonym: ジョーク (Western-style joke)
Compare: ギャグ (gag, joke)
Compare: 戯言(ざれごと) (nonsense)
core
Added 2026.1.12 15:34 · Revised 2026.9.2 12:02
03000/03347_joudan