"D" is for....DROLL

Droll can be an adjective (amusing in an odd way, waggish, whimsically humorous says Dictionary.com), a noun (a jester or a wag, ibid), or an intransitive verb (to jest or to joke) (what, pray tell, is THAT? I really have to start hanging out more with Strunk & White - I've heard they're fun guys, right?).

From the French for scamp, and the Middle Dutch for imp, it is a short, sweet and oh, so evocative word. Use it in dialogue and you can immediately characterize both the speaker AND the object of derision (because when someone calls another person "droll" is usually not a "good" thing).

Synonyms: Witty, a clown. Antonyms: serious (or another of my favorite "d" words, DOUR!)

"Oh, my dear boy, do tell us another of your droll little tales!" said the Duchess of Dingleberry to the Tsar of Tumescence.

See? You know that someone in the scene is seething, right? And that one Duchess is due for a comeuppance .....