Sarcasm - Origin of The Term

Origin of The Term

The word comes from the Greek σαρκασμός (sarkasmos) which is taken from the word σαρκάζειν meaning "to tear flesh, bite the lip in rage, sneer".

It is first recorded in English in 1579, in an annotation to The Shepheardes Calender by Edmund Spenser: October:

Tom piper; An Ironicall, spoken in derision of these rude wits, whych make more account of a ryming rybaud, then of skill grounded upon learning and iudgment. —Edmund Spenser

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