Have you ever heard of verbal irony? Take for example during the time for elections. A candidate who is hated by most people loses the election to another contestant and somebody is heard saying, “Oh my! I was really hoping he would win.” Now the speaker’s words are an example of verbal irony.

The definition of verbal irony

Verbal irony is a type of irony that refers to the situation where the words of a speaker are incongruous with his or her intent. In verbal irony, what the speaker says is always contradictory to what he or she intends.

Types of verbal irony

Did you know that most of the time when you are trying to mock or ridicule something or somebody verbally, you are making use of verbal irony? There are a few types of verbal irony. They include:

Sarcasm: saying something positive when the situation is actually very bad. For example, saying “Ooh! Great!” when you realize you’ve failed in your exams.

Exaggeration/ overstatement: this involves describing the condition or situation of something as worse or better than people see it. For example, saying, “I’m going to die of hunger” when you’ve just skipped one meal.

Understatement; the speaker says things that describe a situation or the condition of something as not as serious as people see it. For example saying, “It hurts just a bit,” when something heavy falls on your broken leg.

Socratic irony: this is a type of irony where the speaker pretends to be ignorant to show another person’s ignorance. For example saying, “I’m confused, I thought doctors were not supposed to smoke in the hospital. Isn’t this the casualties and emergencies ward?” when you find a doctor smoking.

Examples of the use of verbal irony in our daily conversations

A chef being told by a food critic, “The meat was as tender as an old leather boot.”

A coworker spills hot coffee on your white blouse and you say, “What a nice way to start my day.”

Your friend spills his drink on your expensive gaming PC and you say, “That’s why I enjoy having you around buddy.”

When you hire a painter to paint your living room’s walls and he does a bad job, you say, “Look at what a great job you’ve done, I should pay you more for this.”

Examples of the use of verbal irony in literature

“Again and again he tried after the tempting morsel, but at last had to give it up, and walked away with his nose in the air, saying: ‘I am sure they are sour.’”

“I will not marry yet; and, when I do, I swear it shall be Romeo, whom you know I hate, rather than Paris.”

(Romeo & Juliet by William Shakespeare)

After Juliet’s father insists that Juliet should marry Paris (who she dislikes) instead of Romeo (who she likes), Juliet reveals to her mother that she would marry Romeo (who she dislikes) and not Paris (who she likes). The irony in her statement confuses her mother.

The uses of verbal irony

You can use verbal irony in your writing to spice up the reading experience of your readers. If used appropriately, the verbal irony should be humourous to your audience.

You can also use verbal irony to humorously educate your readers on various themes in society. This will prove to be a great way of learning for your audience.

Sources

poemanalysis.com/literary-device/verbal-irony/

https://www.litcharts.com/literary-devices-and-terms/verbal-irony

https://www.thoughtco.com/verbal-irony-1692581