How to Use ribald in a Sentence

ribald

1 of 2 adjective
  • Behind me groups of men broke into ribald ballads that honor their contrade.
    — Dwight Garner, New York Times, 16 Apr. 2018
  • Some more-than-meets-the-eye introspection punctuated with a ribald quip.
    — Dan Wiederer, chicagotribune.com, 26 Aug. 2019
  • One of the big reasons the fest was bursting at the seams was the appearance of Post Malone, a rising star who blends country crooning with ribald rap.
    — Doug MacCash, NOLA.com, 30 Oct. 2017
  • Unlike so many previous films that exploited the topic for ribald comedy, this effort adopts a more serious, at times even mournful tone.
    — Frank Scheck, The Hollywood Reporter, 6 Feb. 2018
  • There wasn’t a Jewish guy and an Italian guy and a guy from Alabama, all trading faintly ribald stories, while making the world safe for democracy.
    — Mick Lasalle, San Francisco Chronicle, 31 Jan. 2018
  • Haywood discussed her campaign on a recent afternoon at her two-story brick home on the South Side of Chicago, showing a ribald sense of humor and a gift for gab.
    — Malika Andrews, New York Times, 8 May 2018
  • Over the years, the notoriously ribald Stern has interviewed hundreds of actors, comedians, music artists, athletes, politicians and more on his show.
    — Todd Spangler, Variety, 8 Sep. 2025
  • In contrast to this ribald directness, Kokopeli’s playsets feature characters who appear detached and disconnected.
    — Theo Belci, Artforum, 2 June 2026
  • Other yuks fall into the category of mildly naughty Dad Jokes, and include a ribald misinterpretation of the word horologist.
    — Michael O'Sullivan, The Denver Post, 26 May 2017
  • Beulah picks up the story from there, spilling the colorful and ribald saga of how her family — originally named Sullivan, from Ireland — migrated west and got caught in the middle of the Texas revolution.
    — Noel Murray, Vulture, 12 June 2026
  • There’s Harley Russell, ribald proprietor and performer at the Sandhills Curiosity Shop in Erick, Okla.
    — Los Angeles Times, 12 May 2026
  • Despite the ribald phrasing, this kind of question is not entirely uncommon at Memphis’s World Championship Barbecue Cooking Contest.
    — Sam Stone, Bon Appetit Magazine, 1 July 2026
  • Some thought that Kubrick’s adaptation of Thackeray should have been more like Tony Richardson’s Best Picture–winning 1963 Henry Fielding adaptation Tom Jones — earthy, ribald, comic.
    — Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 31 Dec. 2025

ribald

2 of 2 noun
  • Sam’s snarky quips when fending off villains’ advances are ribald and don’t land.
    — Courtney Howard, Variety, 16 June 2025
  • That can make the show feel stakeless, but that’s arguably also the ribald fun of the series!
    — Lili Loofbourow, Washington Post, 23 Mar. 2023
  • Other gamers unearthed ribald promotional images the studio has used in the past.
    — Aja Romano, Vox, 4 Sep. 2024
  • Choosing to conclude the ribald supernatural comedy with the film crew moving away makes sense on a few levels.
    — Alan Sepinwall, Rolling Stone, 16 Dec. 2024
  • Both performances offer touches of ribald humor that pay homage to drag’s more transgressive roots, while sanding off the sharpest of those edges and putting a wholesome face on the form.
    — Ronan Farrow, The New Yorker, 1 Mar. 2024
  • The occasionally ribald comedy leans into, ahem, corny jokes.
    — Stephen Humphries, The Christian Science Monitor, 20 Nov. 2024
  • A little ribald teasing would be plenty to incite the rough-and-tumble street fight that proceeds Romeo and Juliet’s clandestine exchange of vows.
    — Rebecca Ritzel, Washington Post, 13 Feb. 2024
  • Shelton, ever the charismatic stylist, seemed revel in performing some of the more ribald classics from Keith's catalog at such an austere event.
    — Marcus K. Dowling, The Tennessean, 21 Oct. 2024
  • There’s a childlike desperation and need for attention that makes the ribald First Lady ultimately rootable.
    — Patrick Ryan, USA TODAY, 12 July 2024
  • Harriet is witty and ribald, while Morgan is devastatingly roguish and charming.
    — Maureen Lee Lenker, EW.com, 22 Feb. 2023
  • Mix that with plenty of awkward moments and some ribald humor, and this is already shaping up to be yet another terrific season of one of HBO’s best shows.
    — Erik Kain, Forbes, 24 Feb. 2025
  • Their ribald interactions prove genuinely funny at times, especially in a scene in which Xander takes his white privilege for granted while provoking a racist cop.
    — Frank Scheck, The Hollywood Reporter, 18 Aug. 2023
  • Balanced attack with coherent black fruit, ribald acidity and a tight package of elegant and layered flavors that include brownies, dark plums, mocha, dark licorice, lava cake and balsamic.
    — Tom Mullen, Forbes, 2 Mar. 2025
  • When one Mickey is playfully fondled by his girlfriend, Nasha (Naomi Ackie), a shock of ribald energy courses through the movie.
    — Justin Chang, The New Yorker, 28 Feb. 2025
  • Based on the Critical Role D&D campaign, the show is a super-condensed adaptation that’s funny, ribald, emotionally poignant and a ton of fun.
    — Erik Kain, Forbes, 4 Oct. 2024
  • The beach softball tournament is most noted for its first weekend ribald atmosphere, complete with team names not fit for a family newspaper and a Miss Emerson contest named after risqué knock-knock joke.
    — Don Norcross, San Diego Union-Tribune, 24 July 2023
  • The Angus Bowmer Theatre was packed, with an audience made up of all ages of theater viewers, including a large crowd of teenagers on a field trip, who laughed loudest when one of the Montagues thrust their way through ribald jokes.
    — oregonlive, 9 June 2023
  • Only a dose of ribald, good-natured caretaking from one of Choton’s interview subjects, a kothi trans woman named Shou (the delightful Tashnuva Anan), keeps him from floundering.
    — Sara Holdren, Vulture, 25 Jan. 2024
  • Moviegoers might share similar nostalgia, recalling a not-long-ago era when studio offerings centering on ribald jokes would regularly play theatrically — before going missing.
    — Ryan Gajewski, The Hollywood Reporter, 22 June 2023
  • The supermodel reportedly wasn’t happy with being a hot topic on the ribald show, filmed at Kia Forum in Inglewood, California.
    — Madeleine Marr, Miami Herald, 10 May 2024
  • Almost immediately, the video went viral, attracting fans of adult animation, Broadway musicals and ribald comedy who, based on the comments and other online reactions, were charmed by the project’s original voice and punky, carefree style.
    — Calum Marsh, New York Times, 22 Jan. 2024
  • Created by Jenji Kohan and based on Piper Kerman’s memoir, the show was ribald, off-kilter, playfully knowing about female sexuality, and sharp-eyed about the prison-industrial complex.
    — Michael Schulman, The New Yorker, 12 July 2023

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'ribald.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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