as in joking
marked by or expressive of mild or good-natured teasing
the gently bantering tone of the couple's conversation
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
as in jesting
to make jokes
the teacher bantered pleasantly, albeit a bit awkwardly, with the students at the school dance
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of bantering
David Wright Faladé, New Yorker, 28 Sep. 2025
Verb
Jean followed her gaze out the window, to where Wole was bantering with Jean’s brother Sylvester and Jerrald and some of Jerrald’s cousins who’d been staying with them since Katrina, the summer before.
—David Wright Faladé, New Yorker, 28 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for bantering
Verb
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Many users commiserated over the delay, many joking about the United States Postal Service and the mysteries of lost mail.—
Daniella Gray,
MSNBC Newsweek,
24 Sep. 2025
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Reid made light of the incident, joking that Kelce caught him off balance.—
Jesse Newell,
New York Times,
22 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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Notably absent was Jennette McCurdy, who played Carly's sarcastic sidekick Sam in the original series.—
Anna Kaufman,
USA Today,
25 Sep. 2025
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Denise – scrappy, sarcastic, and clever – at first was hostile towards Steven, but that passionate annoyance later evolved into teasing, affectionate companionship.—
Sarah John,
Vulture,
24 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Bantering.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bantering. Accessed 2 Oct. 2025.
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