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Some days, you can’t help but believe in the idea that irony is a living, breathing, cosmic force with a very unusual sense of humor and a personal interest in your life. And if you’re one of the rare people who don’t believe in things like irony or fate, don’t worry, we’re pretty sure that they believe in you.

Bored Panda’s collected some of the finest, most iconic (some might even go as far as to say ‘epic’) ironic moments in the recent history of the internet. So get ready to have a good chuckle as you scroll down. Drop us a comment somewhere below explaining which moments you thought were particularly ironic. And remember to upvote your favorite pics, as well as share the post with your amigos who might be in need of some cheering up. Scroll down for Bored Panda’s informative interview with Albert Katz, Professor Emeritus from Western University, who went into detail about irony, its types, uses, as well as how we process it.

Also be sure to look through Bored Panda’s previous post about the most ironic moments ever, as well as our list of the most ironic things that ever happened.

There were a couple of moments with unexpectedly delicious ironic twists that stuck in our heads. The first one was how an empty Nigerian apartment was discovered to hold 43 million dollars (shame on us thinking that every single one of those spam emails from supposed princes was from scammers!). While the second one was how publications like Cosmopolitan can support radically different points of view in different articles.

Bored Panda interviewed Albert Katz, Professor Emeritus of Cognitive, Developmental, and Brain Sciences from Western University’s Department of Psychology. The professor went into detail about the topic of irony.

“In my studies I have found that university-level students have a pretty clear notion of sarcasm, but are actually quite vague about irony,” the professor said. According to him, there are several types of irony, such as the irony of fate in literature. An example of that would be Oedipus unknowingly killing his father and marrying mother.

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Dogs Are Not Allowed On Beach Due To Possibility That They Might Make A Mess

Dogs Are Not Allowed On Beach Due To Possibility That They Might Make A Mess

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Foxxy
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I would rather the dogs than the ferals who left all that s**t lying everywhere.

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#6

National Geographic Magazine Has Arrived. With An Alert About Excessive Use Of Plastic. It Comes In A Plastic Shrink. And Inside A Plastic Bag To Reinforce The Protection

National Geographic Magazine Has Arrived. With An Alert About Excessive Use Of Plastic. It Comes In A Plastic Shrink. And Inside A Plastic Bag To Reinforce The Protection

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Most of us instinctively understand when a situation is ironic. However, it’s far more difficult to explain what exactly irony is using words. Throughout history, there have been hundreds of suggestions on how best to define it. And some of us might even have our own private definitions of what irony is.

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The most basic definition of irony will include that it’s a contradiction between what’s expected and what actually happens in real life. When you put it like that, you come to realize that irony really is all about expectations being shattered in a humorous way.

Professor Katz said: “There are several components that usually go into irony, and turning irony into sarcasm. Basically, a central motif is the violation of an expectation. But the context in which that violation occurs may make it humorous or not, or sarcastic or not.”

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#10

The Irony Present

The Irony Present

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Lisa Florina
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4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I am not english .. but I never understood why they have so much trouble with your and you're... I mean it's so logical right? What am I missing ...

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#11

Oh The Irony

Oh The Irony

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#12

Walmart Employee

Walmart Employee

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A thing that a lot of us mix up is verbal irony and sarcasm. Though they’re usually used interchangeably, they’re not the same.

One way to remember the difference is this: sarcasm is primarily used to insult someone or cause them harm. If it hurts your feelings, it’s most likely sarcasm, not irony. Now that’s a piece of trivia that you can really wow your friends with.

Katz agreed with the idea that sarcasm has “a negative usage” when compared to “verbal irony, such as how we use it in everyday speech.”

“One can think of irony used sarcastically (e.g. when saying something framed positively, but intending a negative insulting meaning: when one says “you’re my best friend” just after said friend did something mean). But one can also get irony used in the opposite way, such as saying something that on the surface sounds nasty, but is meant positively (e.g. “You're sooo bad”).”

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#13

Stop Texting While Driving

Stop Texting While Driving

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#14

This Sign In My Kid’s Elementary School Fills Me With Nihilistic Joy

This Sign In My Kid’s Elementary School Fills Me With Nihilistic Joy

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“The question of how easy it is to understand or get the point of irony, or sarcasm, is a difficult one," the professor noted. "People differ both in the habitual usage of irony or sarcasm and when dealing with a person who often uses sarcasm, for instance, people sometimes erroneously interpret an ambiguous comment not intended ironically as being ironic, or sarcastic.”

“Also there is research that indicates individual differences in using and understanding irony in general,” Katz explained. “Some people are very literal thinkers and miss the irony presented. Some of my own work indicates that the processing of irony occurs almost immediately during comprehension. One doesn't think about it and at some later point think, oh, was he being ironic when he said X.”

“One thing I do believe is that the processing of irony, or sarcasm, is not based on any one factor, such as a failed expectation, but on a set of computations going on simultaneously,” the professor added.

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#16

Nigerian Princes Were Real All This Time

Nigerian Princes Were Real All This Time

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#19

Wasps Made A Nest On My Wasp Spray Bottle

Wasps Made A Nest On My Wasp Spray Bottle

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#21

My Mom Is Cleaning Out The Library At The Preschool Where She Works And Sent Me This

My Mom Is Cleaning Out The Library At The Preschool Where She Works And Sent Me This

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#22

Effing Horrible

Effing Horrible

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Fruzsina Märcz
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

My favourites are the cover titles next to each other: "Accept your body: you are perfect!" and "New summer diets: 4 ways to loose weight easily!"

smithjordan480 avatar
CbusResident
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Women's bodies being on display? Shame! Men's bodies on display? That's sexy and women enjoying it is just female empowerment! The women's bodies on display are all super-fit? That's sexism and lack of fat acceptance! The men's bodies on display are all super-fit? That's sexy!

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irinadeneva avatar
Irina Deneva-Slav
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

The world would be a much happier place if we could do that, yep. But then what would utterly bored people get offended about?

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RaroaRaroa
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

This reminds me of an "hilarious" video on the Daily Mail of a woman chasing a man around trying to get his face to unlock his phone. Pushing, shoving, falling over etc. No way it would have been called "hilarious" if he had been doing it to her.

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MikeyG
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I notice it a lot in life in general nowadays. In my office it's typical for women to have calendars of topless firefighters and spend lunch breaks ogling at men, inappropriate comments about workmen that come into the office etc, I always end up wondering what their reaction would be if I was to objectify the opposite sex so much.

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Tifferooski
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

All I want to know is if those bulges would be censored in Iran.

catmarshall57 avatar
BusLady
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Hmm. Why are there 40 trophies, not 36? Just wondering.

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Saulo Frota
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

A classic case of "Do what I say, not what I do", also known as hypocrisy

dc1 avatar
DC
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

... if feminism just is about turning the table, it still remains a table that sucks because it is stupid. It isn't to be turned, but to be thrown down.

numinosa avatar
Ottmar Straub
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

well women are much more hipocrit than men - we know that all too well - it is funny from the distance and very painful when it comes too near

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Redfox
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Sorry, I was too busy looking at the photo on the right to take in what the article was about.....Hmmm that guy in the red speedos....well, he will win cos everyone knows red is the fastest colour....hmmmm....

baconycakes1337 avatar
Bacony
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Both articles are unnecessary. The first we already know, the second? Yet more proof that Florans are better than Humans.

nehru avatar
Brenda Swann
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

As a female, I can not tell the number of times I hear women hoot and hauler at a men’s fashion show and think, all those feminists would claim objectification when it is in the revers. Women are almost as bad as men, almost

jcro54 avatar
Judy Crozier
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

the hidden irony is that we are taught that imitating men is the best thing for women to do. Sometimes/often it just isn't.

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Michelle Chevalier
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Am I the only one who can't stop wondering why the dude in the middle thighs are so hairy? Can hang some barrettes off them things

rickhcteprick45 avatar
rick hctep (Rick45)
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Rolled up sucks to cardboard tubes, if you are a fella you know what cold water does to your tackle, red has got two c***s by the look of him, light blue looks like he has half a brick in his trunks.

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Nostalgic Hyena
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Thought this had to do with the fact that Keemstar posted this at first. He's done some stuff..

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Kim Bush
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Cosmo did not publish things like this when I looked at it (darn it)

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Honey
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Cosmo magazine is one of the trashiest magazines out there. I wish they'd just throw in the towel.

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Kjorn
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

woman have the right to objectify men but men have the same right! we both have the right!

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Paul Chang
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

That’s because it always takes a woman to make things hard.

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Si
Community Member
4 years ago

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Nobody said women who objectify men are horrible.

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TheExtremeSmell
Community Member
4 years ago

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True this in simplest form isn’t hypocritical. The implied hypocrisy is that they don’t want men to objectify women thus women shouldn’t objectify men but they never state that. The down votes show the blind anger

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You're Welcome

You're Welcome

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Incognito
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

If the sign was a human: *rolls eyes at driver sarcastically* thank you for driving carefully!

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#24

The Irony Was Strong With This One

The Irony Was Strong With This One

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Foxxy
Community Member
4 years ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I don't see how that can be very comfortable. I absolutely hate it when my pants fall down a smidgen let alone down near my ankles.

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#25

How Did He Get Hired?

How Did He Get Hired?

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Wil Vanderheijden
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Just one of these "advanced" drivers showing of their "advanced car handling skills". AKA jerks.

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#26

Ironic That My Pup Chewed Up This Specific Cards Against Humanity Card

Ironic That My Pup Chewed Up This Specific Cards Against Humanity Card

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#27

The Silent And Powerful Mocking Of A Single Sign

The Silent And Powerful Mocking Of A Single Sign

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#28

Well Now, That's Ironic

Well Now, That's Ironic

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#30

Lady Posts On Facebook To Complain About Employees Not Helping Disabled Customer While Simultaneously Not Helping, Either

Lady Posts On Facebook To Complain About Employees Not Helping Disabled Customer While Simultaneously Not Helping, Either

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#32

In Court For Shoplifting

In Court For Shoplifting

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#33

My Car Displays A Long Distracting Message Reminding You To Not Participate In Distracted Driving–while Driving

My Car Displays A Long Distracting Message Reminding You To Not Participate In Distracted Driving–while Driving

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Brandy Grote
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Mine too. One when you turn the car one, and again when you put it in drive! Please don't distract me right when I'm shifting from reverse!

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#34

Nothing Is Written In Stone

Nothing Is Written In Stone

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#35

Didn't Have Time To Read It I Guess

Didn't Have Time To Read It I Guess

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#37

Author Asks Why His Book Called 'No. More. Plastic' Was Wrapped In Plastic

Author Asks Why His Book Called 'No. More. Plastic' Was Wrapped In Plastic

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Foxxy
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I don't understand the need for the plastic wraps on books, just a waste in my opinion.

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#38

The Irony Of The Bar At A Paypal Business Event

The Irony Of The Bar At A Paypal Business Event

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#41

I Don't Think The Women's Department Gets The Irony

I Don't Think The Women's Department Gets The Irony

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#42

The Very Definition Of Irony

The Very Definition Of Irony

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#43

Those Gears Won't Turn, Which I Guess Makes It A Fairly Apt Metaphor For School Districts And Education

Those Gears Won't Turn, Which I Guess Makes It A Fairly Apt Metaphor For School Districts And Education

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#44

I'm A Public Defender. The ATM In Jail Always Strikes Me As A Little Ironic

I'm A Public Defender. The ATM In Jail Always Strikes Me As A Little Ironic

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#45

I Mean Isn’t This Ironic?

I Mean Isn’t This Ironic?

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Note: this post originally had 90 images. It’s been shortened to the top 45 images based on user votes.

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