Definition of DERIDE

Choose the Right Synonym for deride

ridicule, deride, mock, taunt mean to make an object of laughter of. ridicule implies a deliberate often malicious belittling. consistently ridiculed everything she said deride suggests contemptuous and often bitter ridicule. derided their efforts to start their own business mock implies scorn often ironically expressed as by mimicry or sham deference. youngsters began to mock the helpless wino taunt suggests jeeringly provoking insult or challenge. hometown fans taunted the visiting team

Did You Know?

When deride was borrowed into English in the 16th century, it came to us by combining the prefix de- with ridēre, a Latin verb meaning "to laugh." Ridēre is also the ancestor of the English words risible ("laughable") and ridiculous. Of course, English has a number of words meaning "to laugh at unkindly"; in addition to deride, we have ridicule, mock, and taunt. Deride suggests laughter loaded with contemptuousness or bitterness, whereas ridicule implies a deliberate often malicious belittling ("consistently ridiculed everything she said"). Mock implies scorn often ironically expressed by mimicry or sham deference ("mocking the speaker's impassioned tones"). Taunt suggests jeeringly provoking insult or challenge ("hometown fans taunted the visiting team").

Examples of deride in a Sentence

my brothers derided our efforts, but were forced to eat their words when we won first place

Recent Examples on the Web

Then there's Kevin Na, who was derided on social media -- including by former England cricketer Kevin Pietersen -- for taking a minute-and-a-half over what appeared to be a routine tap-in at the Genesis Open. — Ben Dirs For Cnn, CNN, "Golf's slow play row rumbles on, but is there a quick fix?," 23 Mar. 2018 Trump wrote on Twitter, before deriding former FBI Director James Comey, who Trump fired in May 2017. — NBC News, "President Trump hails McCabe's firing, lawmakers push for release of IG report," 17 Mar. 2018 Trump has publicly derided Sessions for his decision to recuse himself from the federal probe into possible collusion between the Trump campaign and the Russian government in the 2016 elections. — Deirdre Shesgreen, USA TODAY, "Trump adviser dodges question about the president's 'drunk/drugged up loser' tweet," 22 Apr. 2018 The vice president also derided Russia for interfering in the 2016 presidential election and vowed the Trump administration would do more to prevent future cyber-attacks. — Bradford Betz, Fox News, "Trump inherited 'cyber-crisis' from Obama, VP Pence says at cybersecurity summit," 1 Aug. 2018 An experimental therapy for type 1 diabetes, widely derided by mainstream diabetes researchers, lowered blood sugar levels to near normal, a small, ongoing trial found. — Sharon Begley, STAT, "Controversial researcher’s diabetes vaccine causes improvement in small study," 21 June 2018 The cafe menu includes milk-tea drinks from the Boba Guys (the company’s founders, Andrew Chau and Bin Chen, are Mr. Hong’s partners at the restaurant), kid bento boxes and avocado toast, that trendy, sometimes derided indulgence. — Cynthia Durcanin, New York Times, "A San Francisco Museum Restaurant That Is on Theme," 23 June 2018 Over the past 24 months, Trump has scorned judges, derided the American court system, and trampled on all manner of constitutional principles. — Joan Biskupic, CNN, "Trump's sustained attacks on American rights," 26 May 2018 The company also erected a tent roughly the length of two football fields behind its factory to assemble Model 3 sedans, an idea that some auto industry veterans derided as crazy. — David R. Baker, SFChronicle.com, "Tesla factory production jumps, and Model 3 hits elusive goal," 2 July 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'deride.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.