Skip to main content

How to Show Sarcasm in Text

Quick and Dirty Tips
  • Podcasts
    • Grammar Girl
    • Curious State
    • Get-Fit Guy
    • Money Girl
    • Project Parenthood
    • Relationship Doctor
    • Modern Mentor
    • Nutrition Diva
    • Savvy Psychologist
    • Who Knew?
    • Unknown History
    • Modern Manners Guy
  • Books
  • Categories
    • Health & Fitness
    • House & Home
    • Parenting
    • Relationships
    • Pets
    • Education
    • Tech
    • Productivity
    • Business & Career
    • Money & Finance
  • Offers
  • About QDT

What's Hot

How to Prepare for Your First Year of College

June 2, 2023

8 Ways to Cure a Hangover Fast

June 2, 2023

Should You Take Breaks from Working Out?

June 1, 2023
opens in a new window Facebook opens in a new window Twitter opens in a new window Instagram
Quick and Dirty Tips
  • Podcasts
    • Grammar Girl
    • Curious State
    • Get-Fit Guy
    • Money Girl
    • Project Parenthood
    • Relationship Doctor
    • Modern Mentor
    • Nutrition Diva
    • Savvy Psychologist
    • Who Knew?
    • Unknown History
    • Modern Manners Guy
  • Books
  • Categories
    • Health & Fitness
    • House & Home
    • Parenting
    • Relationships
    • Pets
    • Education
    • Tech
    • Productivity
    • Business & Career
    • Money & Finance
  • Offers
  • About QDT
opens in a new window Facebook opens in a new window Twitter opens in a new window Instagram opens in a new window Pinterest
Quick and Dirty Tips
You are at:Home » How to Show Sarcasm in Text
Grammar Girl

How to Show Sarcasm in Text

People have been trying to create sarcasm punctuation marks for years, but the solution is already in our hands.

By Sarah PetersOctober 28, 2019No Comments5 Mins Read
opens in a new window Facebook opens in a new window Twitter opens in a new window Pinterest opens in a new window LinkedIn opens in a new window Tumblr opens in a new window Email
opens in a new window Apple Podcast Page opens in a new window Spotify Podcast Page opens in a new window Google Podcast Page opens in a new window Sticher Podcast Page
sarcasm spelled out using blocksopens IMAGE file
Share
opens in a new window Facebook opens in a new window Twitter opens in a new window Pinterest opens in a new window WhatsApp opens in a new window Email

This sentence begins the best article you will ever read.

Chances are you thought that last statement might be sarcasm. Sarcasm, as linguist Robert Gibbs noted, includes “words used to express something other than and especially the opposite of the literal meaning of a sentence.” A form of irony, it also tends to be directed toward a specific individual.

However, it’s not always easy to figure out if a writer is being sarcastic — particularly as we march ahead in a digital age that has transformed the way we communicate, with texting, emailing and online commentary replacing face-to-face chats or phone conversations.

In writing, the signal of sarcasm can be muddied. For example, say you’re texting with a friend about meeting at the movies:

Friend: I’m waiting at the front. Movie starts in 5.

You: I’m on my way now. Should be there in 10.

Friend: I’m glad you were watching the clock today.

Was the friend being sarcastic or sincere? The later you are, the more upset they’ll likely be, and the higher the probability their response is a sarcastic jab. But if your friend knows you’re usually much later, they could be sincere.

So there’s one thing to look for: How well does the attitude the writer is conveying agree with the situation and the person?

Nonetheless, the struggle to interpret written sarcasm is real.

Studies have shown that people realize they have a tough time interpreting sarcasm in writing. Studying the use of email, researchers found writers who think they’re being obviously sarcastic still confuse readers.

Sarcasm thrives in ambiguous situations – and that’s the main issue.

When delivered in person, sarcasm tends to assume a cutting, bitter tone. But written messages don’t always get that attitude across or give you much else to go on. We still need more information.

Signals that go missing in texts

Studies have examined the use of sarcasm in a variety of everyday situations, whether it’s at work to give criticism or praise, or in situations where social norms get violated. (Be on time to movies, people!)

The problem is that a lot of previous studies of sarcasm have been done on spoken sarcasm, which tends to give listeners cues.

When you have a conversation with someone face-to-face (or FaceTime-to-FaceTime) and they say something sarcastic, you’ll see their facial expression, and they may look slightly bemused or tense. Equally or more helpful, the tone of their voice will likely change, too – they may sound more intense or draw out certain phrases.

You’ll also be firmly grounded in the real-time context of the situation, so when they say, “Man, nice job ironing your clothes,” you can look down — and see your wrinkled shirt.

All of these cues have been researched, and we know enough about them that we have the ability to artificially make a sincerely spoken statement sound sarcastic.

And yet when we text, a lot of that information goes missing.

There are no facial cues, no vocal tones and maybe even a delayed response if a person can’t text you back immediately. And if you don’t know the person all that well, there goes your last potential cue: history.

Emojis to the rescue?

So after what you thought was an unexceptional first date — exactly how do you interpret the following flurry of texts?

Date: I had a great time. (12:03 a.m.)

Date: That was the most fun I’ve had in years. (12:05 a.m.)

Date: Really, it could not have gone better. (12:30 a.m.)

Was the date really that good? Did they seem like they had that much fun? Or are they just a jerk lamenting the wasted time? All valid questions. And the recipient could come to a lot of conclusions.

Fear not. The digital age has developed some ways to mitigate some of the tortuous ambiguity. You can probably include an emoji to make it clearer to a reader something was meant sarcastically.

Date: I had a great time. (12:03 a.m.)

Date: That was the most fun I’ve had in years. 😂tears of joy emoji (12:05 a.m.)

Date: It really, could not have gone better. 😑emotionless emoji (12:30 a.m.)

Ambiguity reduced, and facial expression taken care of. Probably not headed for date #2.

If we’re talking about email, we also have modifications that can be made to text. We can italicize or bold words to change the way a reader interprets the message.

Lastly, social media platforms like Twitter have given writers even more tools to allow people to communicate their intent. A study that included sarcastic tweets found that tweeters who include the hashtag #sarcasm tend to use more interjections (wow!) and positive wording for negative situations in their sarcastic tweets.

Algorithms have actually been built to determine the presence of sarcasm and rudeness in tweets, user reviews and online conversations. The formulas were able to identify language that’s outright rude pretty easily. But in order to correctly detect sarcasm, researchers found that algorithms need both linguistic (language) and semantic (meaning) information built in.

In other words, sarcasm’s subtlety means that the algorithms require more specification in their coding – unless you #sarcasm, of course.

With so many options to choose from, it’s time to make sure that text you send at 2:30 a.m. really gets your point across. winking emoji

Sara Peters is an assistant professor of psychology at Newberry College in South Carolina.

This article was originally published on The Conversation and is included here through a Creative Commons license (CC BY-ND 4.0). Read the original article.

Image courtesy of Shutterstock.

Sarah Peters


Add A Comment

Comments are closed.

Don't Miss

How to Prepare for Your First Year of College

By JJ Watt, PartnerJune 2, 2023

Your first year of college is not only exciting, but quite transformative as well. It’s…

8 Ways to Cure a Hangover Fast

June 2, 2023

Should You Take Breaks from Working Out?

June 1, 2023

Think You’re Too Rich for a Roth IRA? Think Again

May 25, 2023

Stay In Touch

  • opens in a new window Facebook 12K
  • opens in a new window Twitter 25.7K
  • opens in a new window Pinterest 18.5K
  • opens in a new window Instagram 123K
  • opens in a new window YouTube 23K
  • opens in a new window Vimeo 11.2K

Our Picks

How to Prepare for Your First Year of College

By JJ Watt, PartnerJune 2, 2023

8 Ways to Cure a Hangover Fast

By Bruce and Jeanne LubinJune 2, 2023

Should You Take Breaks from Working Out?

By Kevin DonJune 1, 2023
opens in a new window Demo

Subscribe

opens in a new window Sarah Peters for Apple Podcast Page opens in a new window Sarah Peters for Spotify Podcast Page opens in a new window Sarah Peters for Google Podcast Page opens in a new window Sarah Peters for Sticher Podcast Page opens in a new window Amazon Play Podcast Page

Books

Book Cover for Quick and dirty Tips for Better Writing
opens in a new windowBook Cover for Quick and dirty Tips for Better Writing image for Amazon.com opens in a new windowBook Cover for Quick and dirty Tips for Better Writing image for Barnes and Noble opens in a new windowBook Cover for Quick and dirty Tips for Better Writing image for IndiBOund opens in a new windowBook Cover for Quick and dirty Tips for Better Writing image for  Apple iBookstore opens in a new windowBook Cover for Quick and dirty Tips for Better Writing image for Teaser
Ultimate Writing Guide
opens in a new windowUltimate Writing Guide image for Amazon.com opens in a new windowUltimate Writing Guide image for Barnes and Noble opens in a new windowUltimate Writing Guide image for IndiBOund opens in a new windowUltimate Writing Guide image for  Apple iBookstore

Don't miss

Never miss another tip! Join our list to get updates from your favorite hosts delivered straight to your inbox
Sign Up

ABOUT US

logo-img

Whether you want to manage your money better, rock your professional life, stay fit and eat healthy, or discover the keys to better mental health, Quick and Dirty Tips delivers short-form podcasts and articles every week to keep you at the top of your game, usually in ten minutes or less!

Email: contact@quickanddirtytips.comcreate new email

QUICK LINKS

  • opens in a new windowHealth & Fitness
  • opens in a new windowHouse & Home
  • opens in a new windowParenting
  • opens in a new windowRelationships
  • opens in a new windowPets
  • opens in a new windowEducation
  • opens in a new windowTech
  • opens in a new windowProductivity
  • opens in a new windowBusiness & Career
  • opens in a new windowMoney & Finance
  • opens in a new windowHow to listen
  • opens in a new windowPrivacy notice
  • opens in a new windowAds & Cookies
  • opens in a new windowTerms of Use
  • opens in a new windowAbout QDT
  • opens in a new windowOur Hosts

OUR PICKS

How to Prepare for Your First Year of College

June 2, 2023

8 Ways to Cure a Hangover Fast

June 2, 2023

Should You Take Breaks from Working Out?

June 1, 2023
opens in a new window Facebook opens in a new window Twitter opens in a new window Instagram
Copyright © 2023 Macmillan Publishing Group, LLC. Quick & Dirty Tips™ and related trademarks appearing on this website are the property of Mignon Fogarty, Inc. and Macmillan Publishing Group, LLC.

Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.