What does levity mean?
Word: Levity
Part of Speech: Noun
Meaning: Levity means a joking, playful manner at a time when others expect you to be solemn.
Synonyms: frivolity, flippancy
Antonyms: gravity
Word origin: Comes from Latin levitas, from levis.
How do you spell levity?
Syllables: lev - i - ty
Tricky part: The middle vowel is hardly heard when the word is said, so students often write e or a there. It is an i.
Watch out for: levety, levaty
Memory tip: Gravity is its opposite and the two share an ending, so copy the i from gravity into this word.
Levity in a sentence
Example 1: The headmistress allowed a little levity at the end of the long annual meeting.
Example 2: His remark about the pigeons brought some levity to the debate.
Example 3: Exam halls are no place for levity, so we saved our jokes for the bus home.
Fun Fact
Levity and gravity were once paired in science too. Before Newton, many scholars believed that flames and smoke went upward because they possessed levity, just as stones fell because of gravity.
Practise the CREST Way
Spell Spies
Choose the incorrectly spelt word:
a) leavity
b) cavity
c) acuity
d) brevity
Show answer
a) leavity. The word opens with a plain le, with no a beside the e.
Jumble Tumble
What is the meaning of the word that can be formed from the given letters?
vltiey
a) a strong and lasting wish to travel
b) great care taken over very small details
c) the skill of speaking well in public
d) a light-hearted attitude towards something important
Show answer
d) a light-hearted attitude towards something important. The six letters make a noun for joking when the moment is a grave one.
Word Puzzle
Match each word with its opposite:
1. levity 2. opaque 3. frugal a. wasteful b. seriousness c. transparent
a) 1-b, 2-c, 3-a
b) 1-c, 2-a, 3-b
c) 1-b, 2-a, 3-c
d) 1-a, 2-c, 3-b
Show answer
a) 1-b, 2-c, 3-a. Joking is the reverse of seriousness, opaque glass is the reverse of transparent glass, and frugal habits are the reverse of wasteful ones.
Word Tally
Give 2 marks for each correctly spelt word. How many marks in all?
levity, temerity, longivity, alacrity, cellebrity
a) 4
b) 6
c) 10
d) 8
Show answer
b) 6. Longevity has an e after the n and celebrity has one l, so three words earn marks.
Multiple Choice Questions
1. What would count as levity at a formal prize-giving?
a) the head girl reading out the winners
b) the teachers handing over certificates
c) the guests standing for the anthem
d) the principal joking about his own tie
Show answer
d) the principal joking about his own tie
2. A speaker adds a moment of levity mostly to ___.
a) help the listeners relax
b) correct a mistake in the notes
c) show the audience some numbers
d) make the talk much longer
Show answer
a) help the listeners relax
