incongruity between what might be expected and what actually occurs; "the irony of Ireland''s copying the nation she most hated";
witty language used to convey insults or scorn; "he used sarcasm to upset his opponent"; "irony is wasted on the stupid"; "Satire is a sort of glass, wherein beholders do generally discover everybody''s face but their own"--Johathan Swift;
a trope that involves incongruity between what is expected and what occurs;