: characterized by insincerity, irony, or whimsical exaggeration
: with insincerity, irony, or whimsical exaggeration
Examples of tongue-in-cheek in a Sentence
Adverb
The whole interview was done tongue in cheek.
Recent Examples on the Web
Joey Nolfi, EW.com, 19 Apr. 2025
The 62 spacious rooms strike a balance between simplicity and fun, with clean lines and tongue-in-cheek touches, such as tea bags tucked into faux cigarette packs.
—Travel + Leisure Editors, Travel + Leisure, 16 Apr. 2025
Tom Zirpoli, Baltimore Sun, 15 Apr. 2025
Little to no foley of the car, few to no anchoring shots of the road from inside the car, and a purposely simplistic GPS—suggesting tongue in cheek that the parents are in uncharted territory—conspire to keep us on edge.
—Ritesh Mehta, IndieWire, 14 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for tongue-in-cheek
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Adjective
Her name might be a tongue-in-cheek nod, but the Drag Race fandom will learn to put some respect on it (and her four-win-strong run of excellence through season 17) after RuPaul crowned the Cleveland queen as the winner of one of the best seasons in recent her-story.
—Joey Nolfi, EW.com, 19 Apr. 2025
The 62 spacious rooms strike a balance between simplicity and fun, with clean lines and tongue-in-cheek touches, such as tea bags tucked into faux cigarette packs.
—Travel + Leisure Editors, Travel + Leisure, 16 Apr. 2025
Adverb
With tongue in cheek, France is asking for the return of the Statue of Liberty since America no longer seems to be the beacon of freedom.
—Tom Zirpoli, Baltimore Sun, 15 Apr. 2025
Little to no foley of the car, few to no anchoring shots of the road from inside the car, and a purposely simplistic GPS—suggesting tongue in cheek that the parents are in uncharted territory—conspire to keep us on edge.
—Ritesh Mehta, IndieWire, 14 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for tongue-in-cheek
Cite this Entry
“Tongue-in-cheek.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/tongue-in-cheek. Accessed 24 Apr. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share