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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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james_fox1984 avatar
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
Community Member
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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Eirik Johnsbråten
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

"Life is what happens to you when you're busy making other plans."

analauravaz avatar
Ana Vaz
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

In Spanish, we have a saying that says something that could translate to "if you spit up it falls on your forehead"

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

I like to think that there’s a three-year backstory in which she started interacting with a grumpy old greeter at Walmart (played by Ed Asner) who slowly shared his life story with her, and toward the end, she started seeing the error of her ways. He was then diagnosed with a terminal disease, and his dying wish was that she take his mantle as the hardest-working greeter Walmart has ever seen. “Save Friendships, Live Better” coming to the Hallmark Channel this fall.

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

Now she has to work with the people she was being rude to. The irony of it.

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

don't spit into the well, one day you may have to drink from it. -Lithuanian proverb

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

It's because the customers are morons! One old bat today was like "where do I put the stuff I don't want? I'm going to Feed Meyer. You don't have all I'm looking for." She had TWO F*****g items in her cart . I wanted to say You can put them back where you found them like a decent human being. But if course I said "I'll take them." We're not allowed to be rude to customers but when you're tired and sick (at work because you can't afford to stay home) sometimes you can't control you're facial expressions or tone of voice.

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susieq601 avatar
Sue Clifford
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I am retracting my reply. After thinking about this and not knowing what the future holds, especially in this political climate and our environment, this could be me or anyone of us for that matter.

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

She will see why Walmart employees are sick of peoples s**t

nath_langevin27 avatar
Nathalie Langevin
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

There is a 3 years gap between the 2 posts... Lots of things change in 3 years.

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

It would be ironic if she was awful to people. Maybe she is just a mediocre employee actually doing their job.

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2WheelTravlr
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Her first post is 3 years prior to the second. In the first post she is condescending towards anyone working at Walmart, insinuating it is the only place that would hire them. Three years later, she's working at Walmart.

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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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#23

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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james_fox1984 avatar
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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