mock

verb

\ ˈmäk

, ˈmȯk\

mocked; mocking; mocks

Definition of mock

(Entry 1 of 4)

transitive verb

1 : to treat with contempt or ridicule : deride he has been mocked as a mama's boy— C. P. Pierce

2 : to disappoint the hopes of for any government to mock men's hopes with mere words and promises and gestures— D. D. Eisenhower

3 : defy, challenge the unstable, strange new world of subatomic particles that mock all attempts at understanding— Philip Howard

4a : to imitate (someone or something) closely : mimic a mockingbird was mocking a cardinal— Nelson Hayes

b : to mimic in sport or derision followed the old man along the street mocking his gait

intransitive verb

: jeer, scoff she … mocked at his piety as affectation— Ferdinand Schevill

mock

noun

Definition of mock (Entry 2 of 4)

1 : an act of ridicule or derision : jeer

2 : one that is an object of derision or scorn

3 : mockery

4a : an act of imitation

b : something made as an imitation

mock

adjective

Definition of mock (Entry 3 of 4)

: of, relating to, or having the character of an imitation : simulated, feigned the mock solemnity of the parody

mock

adverb

Definition of mock (Entry 4 of 4)

: in an insincere or counterfeit manner —usually used in combination mock-serious

Other Words from mock Synonyms & Antonyms Choose the Right Synonym More Example Sentences Learn More about mock

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Choose the Right Synonym for mock

Verb

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

copy, imitate, mimic, ape, mock mean to make something so that it resembles an existing thing. copy suggests duplicating an original as nearly as possible. copied the painting and sold the fake as an original imitate suggests following a model or a pattern but may allow for some variation. imitate a poet's style mimic implies a close copying (as of voice or mannerism) often for fun, ridicule, or lifelike imitation. pupils mimicking their teacher ape may suggest presumptuous, slavish, or inept imitating of a superior original. American fashion designers aped their European colleagues mock usually implies imitation with derision. mocking a vain man's pompous manner

Examples of mock in a Sentence

Verb

The boys mocked him for showing fear. He mocks art only because he doesn't understand it. They continue to mock the idea of a new government. We are being mocked for our religious beliefs. You can mock me as much as you like, but I'm going to do it anyway.

Noun

they made a mock of the new recruit in front of the whole unit obviously, the “priceless” Grecian urn that is destroyed in the movie was a mock

Adjective

We stared at him in mock surprise. Every summer, our history club performs mock battles to relive our country's greatest war.

Recent Examples on the Web: Verb

Footage recorded from the crowd provided an amusing YouTube video and sparked a fresh round of tweets mocking Wright. — Olga Kharif, latimes.com, "Craig Wright says he invented bitcoin. Now he’s suing those who doubt him," 20 June 2019 Mini-AOC releases 're-election video' mocking the New York congresswoman. — Fox News, "Trump, Biden jab each other in Iowa; Sanders to make case for Democratic socialism," 12 June 2019 Blatantly rude and disrespectful behavior, like mocking deaths or climbing on the property of a historical site, is inexcusable. — Taylor Lorenz, The Atlantic, "There’s Nothing Wrong With Posing for Photos at Chernobyl," 12 June 2019 Local conservative radio host Dori Monson devoted a 10-minute segment to mocking the class. — Marcus Harrison Green, The Seattle Times, "Seattle yoga teacher’s ‘Undoing Whiteness’ class: Founded on deep purpose, it’s triggered outrage," 10 June 2019 In a series of tweets last week, Carlos Maza, who produces a video series for Vox, said Steven Crowder had posted numerous videos on YouTube calling him homophobic slurs while also mocking his ethnicity. — Ashley Mcbride, SFChronicle.com, "SF Pride board contacted Google over YouTube controversy, official says," 7 June 2019 For the past two years, Maza said on Twitter last week, Crowder has taken aim at him through Louder With Crowder, on which Crowder regularly mocks Maza for being gay and Latinx. — Aja Romano, Vox, "YouTube may allow hate speech if it’s part of a larger argument. Yikes.," 6 June 2019 But the stand caused a stir on social media, with some technology fans mocking the price of what is generally regarded as an unexciting accessory. — Amy Woodyatt, CNN, "Apple monitor stand that costs more than an iPhone sparks online uproar," 5 June 2019 Crowder is a part of a growing pundit and commentary community on YouTube, where mocking other creators is par for the course. — Julia Alexander, The Verge, "Creators aren’t surprised that YouTube won’t enforce its own policies against harassment," 5 June 2019

Recent Examples on the Web: Noun

Sitting in front of him is a mock-up of the coffee-table book that will serve as the catalog to the MCAC show. — Jonathan Van Meter, Vogue, "“My Job Is To Be a Spirit Leader”: Behind the Scenes with Virgil Abloh," 14 May 2019 Another regional product, USC linebacker Cameron Smith, makes the Day 1 list in on two mocks. — Noel Harris, sacbee, "Why many ‘way too early’ NFL mock drafts are high on one Sacramento-area product," 3 June 2018 The next two mocks took the Bills from picks 1 through 56, which would include Buffalo’s picks at 53 and 56. — Jonathan Jones, SI.com, "How NFL Teams Build Their Mock Drafts," 25 Apr. 2018 The Freep’s very own Dave Birkett has already done three mocks and will have another coming on Thursday prior to the start of the NFL draft. — Jamie Samuelsen, Detroit Free Press, "NFL mock drafts: Are there too many of them? Must they be numbered?," 23 Apr. 2018 Brown has Holmes going to the Chiefs in consecutive mocks. — Tim Bielik, cleveland.com, "Will Sam Hubbard be a first-round pick? Ohio State 2018 NFL mock draft roundup 4.0," 10 Apr. 2018 Word processors with their letter-size mock-up almost demand to be used full screen. — Rachel Z. Arndt, Popular Mechanics, "Why You Should Ditch Microsoft Word for NotePad," 8 Mar. 2019 Typically speaking, dentists will take impressions and send them to the lab for a mock-up or a blueprint of what that smile and then, once this is reviewed, the mockup can be tested in the patient's mouth. — Roxanne Adamiyatt, Town & Country, "What to Consider Before Getting Veneers on Your Teeth," 28 Feb. 2019 Others swapped new programming into an old Diebold e-pollbook, erasing voters from the rolls, while children as young as 11 hacked the mock-up election websites of 13 secretaries of state. — Benjamin Wofford, Vox, "The midterms are already hacked. You just don’t know it yet.," 25 Oct. 2018

Recent Examples on the Web: Adjective

In this mock draft, the Wings select center Dylan Cozens. — Helene St. James, Detroit Free Press, "Detroit Red Wings NHL mock draft: Dylan Cozens can help rebuild down the road," 5 June 2019 The latest mock draft from nbadraft.net has Williams going 34th to the 76ers. — Roy Parry, orlandosentinel.com, "Magic’s latest pre-draft workout features All-American forwards Grant Williams, Brandon Clarke," 5 June 2019 The Royals were linked to Witt in most mock drafts, saw most of his games this season, and stuck with the potential five-tool player. — Jeff Wilson, star-telegram, "A Royals decree: Kansas City makes Witt Jr. second overall pick in MLB draft," 3 June 2019 Booker, 50, recalls voting for Carter, but in a grade-school mock election. — Bill Barrow, The Seattle Times, "Jimmy Carter finds a renaissance in 2020 Democratic scramble," 20 May 2019 In lookbook images, Gomez furthers the idea of jet setting, taking her clothing for a spin in a mock airport. — Steff Yotka, Vogue, "“I'm in the Stage of Life Where I Love to Adventure”—Selena Gomez Reveals Her Travel-Inspired Puma Collaboration," 15 May 2019 Potter-designer-author-creative extraordinaire Jonathan Adler made not one but two cameos in the video, with his Reform Credenza and Jacques table dotting Swift and Urie's teal-colored mock living room. — Hadley Keller, House Beautiful, "All the Home Decor Items You Can Shop in Taylor Swift's "ME" Video," 26 Apr. 2019 In one mock scenario, a viral Facebook post claiming that Latino voters were barred from voting was sent from a fake account mimicking the regional American Civil Liberties Union office. — Benjamin Wofford, Vox, "The midterms are already hacked. You just don’t know it yet.," 25 Oct. 2018 Also surprised are the Broncos, who in none of their mock scenarios had Chubb still available to them at 5. — Jenny Vrentas, SI.com, "24 Hours ... With Bradley Chubb and His Team at the NFL Draft," 1 May 2018

Recent Examples on the Web: Adverb

The artists Kenya (Robinson) and Doreen Garner are sitting mock-regally on a divan in a moody Gramercy cocktail bar. — Adam Davidson, The New Yorker, "The Podcast as Performance Art," 28 Jan. 2017

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

First Known Use of mock

Verb

15th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Noun

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Adjective

1548, in the meaning defined above

Adverb

circa 1625, in the meaning defined above

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Dictionary Entries near mock

Statistics for mock

Last Updated

24 Jun 2019

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Time Traveler for mock

The first known use of mock was in the 15th century

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More Definitions for mock

mock

verb

English Language Learners Definition of mock

(Entry 1 of 3)

: to laugh at or make fun of (someone or something) especially by copying an action or a way of behaving or speaking

: to criticize and laugh at (someone or something) for being bad, worthless, or unimportant

mock

noun

English Language Learners Definition of mock (Entry 2 of 3)

British : an exam that does not count and that is done to practice for a real exam : a mock exam

mock

adjective

English Language Learners Definition of mock (Entry 3 of 3)

: not based on real or honest feelings

: done or performed to look like the real thing

See the full definition for mock in the English Language Learners Dictionary

mock

verb

\ ˈmäk

mocked; mocking

Kids Definition of mock

(Entry 1 of 2)

1 : to treat with scorn : ridicule Stanley had also tried to explain that he needed to save his energy … but the other boys just mocked him.— Louis Sachar, Holes

2 : mimic entry 2 sense 2