teasing

[ tee-zing ]
See synonyms for: teasingteasings on Thesaurus.com

noun
  1. the act of persistently annoying someone, especially playfully and with silly jokes about them: Most holidays, we all manage to squeeze in at Grandma’s and enjoy a crazy day full of laughter, teasing, eating, and sharing.

  2. the act of bullying, harassing, or tormenting someone: Many students with learning disabilities suffer the frustration of low achievement and the teasing and poor self-image that come with it.

  1. the act of purposely exciting, tantalizing, or sexually arousing someone without providing subsequent gratification: She smiled over her shoulder at him, brown eyes shiny with teasing.

adjective
  1. harassing, tantalizing, or playfully annoying someone in any of these ways: In answer to my eager question, they shrugged a teasing “maybe.”Lisa turns 20 next month and her mother is already sending her teasing texts featuring grandma emojis.

Origin of teasing

1
First recorded in 1585–95; teas(e) + -ing1 for the noun senses; teas(e) + -ing2 for the adjective sense

Other words from teasing

  • teas·ing·ly, adverb

Words Nearby teasing

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use teasing in a sentence

  • The group was overheard teasing Harry about reports that he will soon be walking down the aisle.

  • Then I suddenly realised she was talking seriously—looking to me for help of some kind—and at once I dropped the teasing attitude.

    Three More John Silence Stories | Algernon Blackwood
  • Tom and Blanche had fallen into teasing tricks, a sort of melancholy play to relieve the tedium.

    The Daisy Chain | Charlotte Yonge
  • He has been teasing my parrot in its cage, and has plucked so many of its feathers that it now looks like a beaked rat.

    Kari the Elephant | Dhan Gopal Mukerji
  • I came up to the elephant, and seeing what was going on, told the white men to stop teasing him.

    Kari the Elephant | Dhan Gopal Mukerji
  • All night the thought crept through my brain like a teasing spider: What can we do to make him stay?

    The Holes and John Smith | Edward W. Ludwig