preposterous

1. 1.

   so unreasonable as to invite derision

   “the absurd excuse that the dog ate his homework”

   “that's a cockeyed idea”

   “ask a nonsensical question and get a nonsensical answer”

   “a contribution so small as to be laughable”

   “it is ludicrous to call a cottage a mansion”

   “a preposterous attempt to turn back the pages of history”

   “her conceited assumption of universal interest in her rather dull children was ridiculous”

   Synonymsabsurdcockeyedderisoryidioticlaughableludicrousnonsensicalridiculous

   Similarfoolish

Questions about preposterous

What does preposterous mean?

preposterous means "so unreasonable as to invite derision".

How many syllables are in preposterous?

preposterous has 4 syllables: pre-po-ste-rous. The stress falls on "po". In IPA it is /pɹɪˈpɑstɚəs/.

What is another word for preposterous?

Close synonyms include absurd, cockeyed, derisory, idiotic, laughable. Each sense on this page lists its own synonyms, because a word with several meanings rarely has one substitute that works for all of them.

Is preposterous a common word?

preposterous is banded "Familiar" — widely understood, used when the subject calls for it. The band comes from how often the word appears in a large corpus of everyday English, not from an editor's impression.