one-liner
noun
one-lin·er
ˌwən-ˈlī-nər 
1
: a very succinct joke or witticism
2
: a succinct or meaningful and especially accurate statement
Examples of one-liner in a Sentence
the senator deftly inserted some smart one-liners into an otherwise sober speech
Recent Examples on the Web
Cohen’s work helped reveal that, in the three-billion-letter book that is our genome, even obscure one-liners can be an important part of the story.
—
Dhruv Khullar, New Yorker, 6 Apr. 2026
Tensions notably come to a head between Bennie and his sister-in-law, Lucretia (a game Wanda Sykes), because of his past infidelity, which provides some of the sitcom's funniest moments via razor-sharp one-liner wars.
—Andrew Walsh, Entertainment Weekly, 5 Apr. 2026
Fret not, the sequel to the 2023 Super Mario Bros movie is here with a plethora of new one-liners for kids to repeat without end.
—Rebecca Aizin, PEOPLE, 3 Apr. 2026
Not all of the performances are uniformly excellent, and some of the one-liners Ropp writes in for Brian’s classmates and parents land awkwardly.
—Ryan Lattanzio, IndieWire, 23 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for one-liner
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Dhruv Khullar, New Yorker, 6 Apr. 2026
Tensions notably come to a head between Bennie and his sister-in-law, Lucretia (a game Wanda Sykes), because of his past infidelity, which provides some of the sitcom's funniest moments via razor-sharp one-liner wars.
—Andrew Walsh, Entertainment Weekly, 5 Apr. 2026
Fret not, the sequel to the 2023 Super Mario Bros movie is here with a plethora of new one-liners for kids to repeat without end.
—Rebecca Aizin, PEOPLE, 3 Apr. 2026
Not all of the performances are uniformly excellent, and some of the one-liners Ropp writes in for Brian’s classmates and parents land awkwardly.
—Ryan Lattanzio, IndieWire, 23 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for one-liner
Cite this Entry
“One-liner.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/one-liner. Accessed 6 Apr. 2026.
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