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How do I know in the phrase the New Year's Eve firework display was ridiculous the meaning of ridiculous, since it seems to stand for both, positive and negative sensations (I used an automatic translator)?
Or is a context around the phrase obligatory?
the New Year's Eve firework display was ridiculous, it lasted a few minutes only
the New Year's Eve firework display was ridiculous, it was the biggest I have ever seen
In American English, you can use ridiculous in an informal way to mean outrageous or spectacular (in a good way). It's slang and much more common with a younger crowd, but nevertheless quite common.
You usually have to understand the context of the conversation and sometimes also have to know the speakers to be sure of the intended meaning.
Sometimes, you even have to ask: "Do you mean that in a good way or a bad way?"
Without context all you are told is that it was ridiculous. That has a negative connotation, but you can vary that by adding context.
Without context, it seems pretty negative, but there is no way to infer why it was ridiculous.
'Ridiculously large' doesn't really function well - it would be impressively large.
Why would anyone ridicule something for being greater than expectation?
You can ridicule something for being less than expectation, but not really for exceeding it.
At best, 'ridiculously large' could be considered 'mis-applied hyperbole'. Like saying 'man, it was bad' or 'that's sick' to mean it was good. Don't use in formal writing. Without tone of voice or context it is easily misunderstood.
In standard English, the word "ridiculous" is a negative word. It is the adjective of "ridicule", and thus means something that deserves to be made fun of or criticized.
Maybe teenagers or some other group are using "ridiculous" as a slang word to mean something positive? I'm not familiar with any such usage but such slang is fairly common.
If what you are reading is from a "normal" context, that is, not banter among a group of teenagers, not a conversation including a lot of slang, but an adult and/or serious conversation, the answer is that "ridiculous" is negative, period.
