teased; teasing
1
a
: to make fun of : kid
b
: to disturb or annoy by persistent irritating or provoking especially in a petty or mischievous way
c
: to annoy with petty persistent requests : pester
also
: to obtain by repeated coaxing
d
: to persuade to acquiesce especially by persistent small efforts : coax
e
: to manipulate or influence as if by teasing
2
: to comb (hair) by taking hold of a strand and pushing the short hairs toward the scalp with the comb
3
: to tantalize especially by arousing desire or curiosity often without intending to satisfy it
4
a
: to disentangle and lay parallel by combing or carding
tease wool
b
: teasel
5
: to tear in pieces
especially
: to shred (a tissue or specimen) for microscopic examination
Synonyms
Examples of tease in a Sentence
Verb
He and his wife enjoy teasing each other about their different tastes in music.
The other children teased her because she was wearing braces.
He was always teased by his brother about being short.
Oh, don't get so angry. I was just teasing!
The boy's mother told him to stop teasing the dog.
Noun
a pretty girl who has the reputation of being a bit of a tease
The lower rate is just a tease to attract new customers.
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Recent Examples on the Web
Emy Lacroix, Peoplemag, 24 Nov. 2023
What’s teased is the budding relationship between Benny and his cousin (Charley Hogan), nicknamed Frybread Face, who shows him the ropes and joins him on (mis)adventures.
—Los Angeles Times Staff, Los Angeles Times, 22 Nov. 2023
The video teased highlights from interviews with the members.
—Charisma Madarang, Rolling Stone, 21 Nov. 2023
Fans were quick to jokingly call out the Eagles for invoking Swift in order to more personally tease Travis’ team of reigning Super Bowl champions.
—Hannah Dailey, Billboard, 21 Nov. 2023
Kat the Label alternates mesh and lace to create a barely-there look that teases the imagination, while Cami NYC uses sheer paneling as a form of structure.
—Gaby Keiderling, Vogue, 18 Nov. 2023
On iPhones, this changes the color of the bubbles on my side of the conversation from blue to green, which gives my friends something to tease me about.
—WIRED, 17 Nov. 2023
And about the other kids who have started to tease him about it all.
—Eli Hager, ProPublica, 16 Nov. 2023
To be sure that movie had a clear advantage in that it was teased in the post-credit scene of 2018’s Avengers: Infinity War, while its titular star was a player in 2019’s Avengers: Endgame (it was released between the two Marvel mega-blockbusters).
—Pamela McClintock, The Hollywood Reporter, 14 Nov. 2023
Zack Sharf, Variety, 9 Nov. 2023
As the trailer teases, Woody remains on a mission to find Bonnie and return Forky to the others — but his resolve is tested.
—Kelsie Gibson, Peoplemag, 7 Nov. 2023
The momentous Monday morning when Phoebe Philo opens her online shop has finally arrived‚ after surely the longest tease in fashion history.
—Sarah Mower, Vogue, 30 Oct. 2023
Below, during a spoiler conversation with THR, Martin revisits key moments from the first four episodes of Loki season two and teases that the best is yet to come.
—Brian Davids, The Hollywood Reporter, 27 Oct. 2023
The tease also seemed to preview what looked like a music video, with a shot in which Meg bared her vamp fangs again, as well as an image of a bowl of fruit and other totems on an altar.
—Gil Kaufman, Billboard, 24 Oct. 2023
The title, from Picard’s signature command, is a nod to the starship captain’s primacy in his life, and also perhaps a tease, a hint that herein lie the secrets to the creation of that galactic sense of empathy.
—WIRED, 3 Oct. 2023
However, even after his confirmation, the pair have been coy about keeping their relationship private, merely sharing teases of it online.
—Rebecca Aizin, Peoplemag, 12 Oct. 2023
In a tease earlier this week, the band explained that the project was the realization of a dream to connect with some of the other artists who’ve inspired them.
—Gil Kaufman, Billboard, 5 Oct. 2023
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Verb
Every time the cast gets together, fans speculate about the possibility of a reboot — something several of the actors have teased in the past.
—Emy Lacroix, Peoplemag, 24 Nov. 2023
What’s teased is the budding relationship between Benny and his cousin (Charley Hogan), nicknamed Frybread Face, who shows him the ropes and joins him on (mis)adventures.
—Los Angeles Times Staff, Los Angeles Times, 22 Nov. 2023
The video teased highlights from interviews with the members.
—Charisma Madarang, Rolling Stone, 21 Nov. 2023
Fans were quick to jokingly call out the Eagles for invoking Swift in order to more personally tease Travis’ team of reigning Super Bowl champions.
—Hannah Dailey, Billboard, 21 Nov. 2023
Kat the Label alternates mesh and lace to create a barely-there look that teases the imagination, while Cami NYC uses sheer paneling as a form of structure.
—Gaby Keiderling, Vogue, 18 Nov. 2023
On iPhones, this changes the color of the bubbles on my side of the conversation from blue to green, which gives my friends something to tease me about.
—WIRED, 17 Nov. 2023
And about the other kids who have started to tease him about it all.
—Eli Hager, ProPublica, 16 Nov. 2023
To be sure that movie had a clear advantage in that it was teased in the post-credit scene of 2018’s Avengers: Infinity War, while its titular star was a player in 2019’s Avengers: Endgame (it was released between the two Marvel mega-blockbusters).
—Pamela McClintock, The Hollywood Reporter, 14 Nov. 2023
Noun
The studio launched a trailer tease the day before the official clip’s drop, and that earned 25 million views in 24 hours.
—Zack Sharf, Variety, 9 Nov. 2023
As the trailer teases, Woody remains on a mission to find Bonnie and return Forky to the others — but his resolve is tested.
—Kelsie Gibson, Peoplemag, 7 Nov. 2023
The momentous Monday morning when Phoebe Philo opens her online shop has finally arrived‚ after surely the longest tease in fashion history.
—Sarah Mower, Vogue, 30 Oct. 2023
Below, during a spoiler conversation with THR, Martin revisits key moments from the first four episodes of Loki season two and teases that the best is yet to come.
—Brian Davids, The Hollywood Reporter, 27 Oct. 2023
The tease also seemed to preview what looked like a music video, with a shot in which Meg bared her vamp fangs again, as well as an image of a bowl of fruit and other totems on an altar.
—Gil Kaufman, Billboard, 24 Oct. 2023
The title, from Picard’s signature command, is a nod to the starship captain’s primacy in his life, and also perhaps a tease, a hint that herein lie the secrets to the creation of that galactic sense of empathy.
—WIRED, 3 Oct. 2023
However, even after his confirmation, the pair have been coy about keeping their relationship private, merely sharing teases of it online.
—Rebecca Aizin, Peoplemag, 12 Oct. 2023
In a tease earlier this week, the band explained that the project was the realization of a dream to connect with some of the other artists who’ve inspired them.
—Gil Kaufman, Billboard, 5 Oct. 2023
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These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'tease.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
Phrases Containing tease
Dictionary Entries Near tease
Cite this Entry
“Tease.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/tease. Accessed 29 Nov. 2023.
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Kids Definition
tease
1 of 2 verb
teased; teasing
1
: to untangle and lay parallel by combing or carding
tease wool
teaser
noun
tease
2 of 2 noun1
a
: the act of teasing
b
: the state of being teased
2
: one that teases
Medical Definition
tease
transitive verb
teased; teasing
: to tear in pieces
especially
: to shred (a tissue or specimen) for microscopic examination
More from Merriam-Webster on tease
Nglish: Translation of tease for Spanish Speakers
Britannica English: Translation of tease for Arabic Speakers
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