flippant
Treating seriousness lightly
Flippant describes a lack of appropriate seriousness—treating something grave or important with casual disregard: His flippant remarks about the accident upset everyone.
The word implies the speaker knows better but chooses levity anyway, distinguishing it from mere ignorance.
A flippant tone can signal disrespect, defensiveness, or deliberate provocation.
Given to witty remarks
- cleverShowing mental quickness
- glibSuperficially articulate
- sardonicGrimly mocking
- snarkyMockingly critical in tone
tongue-in-cheek · wisecracking · facetious · waggish · droll · jokey · bantering · playful
Rudely presumptuous
- impudentDisrespectfully bold
- insolentBoldly rude and disrespectful
- cheekyPlayfully disrespectful
- saucyBoldly disrespectful, often playfully
pert · smart-alecky · brazen · cocky · brash · rude · irreverent · audacious
Superficially articulate
- offhandCasually unrehearsed
- cavalierDismissively unconcerned
- breezyMildly windy, or nonchalant
- nonchalantCalmly unconcerned
blasé · unconcerned · indifferent · dismissive · detached · disregarding · careless · perfunctory
Superficially articulate
- shallowWithout much depth
- superficialLacking depth or substance
- trivializingDiminishing perceived significance
- lightheadedFaint and unsteady feeling
thoughtless · silly · vapid · featherweight · empty-headed · ditsy · scatterbrained · flighty
quippy
Given to witty remarks
snarky · tongue-in-cheek · wisecracking · facetious · waggish · droll · jokey · bantering · playful · teasing
impertinent
Rudely presumptuous
saucy · pert · smart-alecky · brazen · cocky · brash · rude · irreverent · audacious · fresh
glib
Superficially articulate
nonchalant · blasé · unconcerned · indifferent · dismissive · detached · disregarding · careless · perfunctory · cursory
glib
Superficially articulate
- shallowWithout much depth
- superficialLacking depth or substance
- trivializingDiminishing perceived significance
lightheaded · thoughtless · silly · vapid · featherweight · empty-headed · ditsy · scatterbrained · flighty · airheaded
sardonic
Grimly mocking
biting · caustic · acerbic · sneering · derisive · scornful · cynical · barbed · snarky · taunting
- rudenessrude, discourtesy, impolite, rudeness, disrespect
- speaking stylesarticulate, blunt, candid, conversational, casual
- funnyfunny, comical, hilarious, humorous, amusing
- dismissive behaviorssnub, scorn, ignore, disdain, dismissal
- writing stylesformal, informal, minimalism, maximalism, concise
- shamelessshameless, brazen, unabashed, barefaced, unapologetic
flippantrespectful
Showing proper regard
reverent · deferential · courteous · considerate · reverential