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jest

 - 3 dictionary results

jest

  [jest]
Use jest in a Sentence
–noun
1. a joke or witty remark; witticism.
2. a bantering remark; a piece of good-natured ridicule; taunt.
3. sport or fun: to speak half in jest, half in earnest.
4. the object of laughter, sport, or mockery; laughing-stock.
5. Obsolete. an exploit. Compare gest.
–verb (used without object)
6. to speak in a playful, humorous, or facetious way; joke.
7. to speak or act in mere sport, rather than in earnest; trifle (often fol. by with): Please don't jest with me.
8. to utter derisive speeches; gibe or scoff.
–verb (used with object)
9. to deride or joke at; banter.
Origin:
1250–1300; ME; var. sp. of gest

Related forms:
jestful, adjective
jest⋅ing⋅ly, adverb

Synonyms:
1. quip. See joke. 2. jape, gibe. 4. butt.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To jest
jest   (jěst)   
n.  

  1. A playful or amusing act; a prank. See Synonyms at joke.

  2. A frolicsome or frivolous mood: spoken in jest.

  3. An object of ridicule; a laughingstock.

  4. A witty remark.

v.   jest·ed, jest·ing, jests

v.   intr.

  1. To act or speak playfully.

  2. To make witty remarks.

  3. To utter scoffs; gibe.

v.   tr.
To make fun of; ridicule.

[Middle English geste, tale, from Old French, from Latin gesta, deeds, from neuter pl. past participle of gerere, to perform.]
jest'ing·ly adv.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

jest 
c.1300, "narrative of exploits" (originally in verse), from O.Fr. geste "action, exploit," from L. gesta "deeds," neut. pl. of gestus, pp. of gerere "to carry, behave, act, perform." Sense descended through "idle tale" (c.1470) to "mocking speech, raillery" (c.1548) to "joke" (1551). The verb in the sense of "to speak in a trifling manner" is from 1530. Jester developed from M.E. gestour "a minstrel, professional reciter of romances" (c.1380), from gesten "recite a tale," which was a jester's original function; sense of "buffoon in a prince's court" is from 1510.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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