Pronunciation: i'-ron-ee
Alternate Spelling: Gk., "affectation of ignorance"
Speaking in such a way as to imply the contrary of what one says, often for the purpose of derision, mockery, or jest.
When in Shakespeare's Much Ado About Nothing the constable Dogberry says "redemption" instead of "damnation" (itself a malapropism), the fact that he means precisely the opposite of what he so passionately exclaims makes this a comical use of irony: O villain! thou wilt be condemned into everlasting redemption for this.