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
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of bantering
Daniel Fienberg, HollywoodReporter, 26 Nov. 2025
Just as Bayazid rose to become tentatively welcome in the shopkeeper’s home, so the shopkeeper rose to a limited bantering acquaintance with his wealthy customers.
—Cressida Leyshon, New Yorker, 23 Nov. 2025
Instead, criticism comes to feel just like bantering at a bar.
—Spencer Kornhaber, The Atlantic, 17 Oct. 2025
Verb
More time is spent with the characters in locker rooms and on benches with players bantering in a vernacular that Tierney is determined to emphasize blurs the line between homosocial and homosexual.
—Daniel Fienberg, HollywoodReporter, 26 Nov. 2025
Just as Bayazid rose to become tentatively welcome in the shopkeeper’s home, so the shopkeeper rose to a limited bantering acquaintance with his wealthy customers.
—Cressida Leyshon, New Yorker, 23 Nov. 2025
Instead, criticism comes to feel just like bantering at a bar.
—Spencer Kornhaber, The Atlantic, 17 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for bantering
Verb
-
The on-again, off-again couple have been dating for over a decade and have (mostly) worked out the kinks of joking about their relationship in public.—
Emma Banks,
InStyle,
10 Jan. 2026
-
Turn around and make a lighthearted comment to the person behind you, maybe joking about the wait time, Simon-Thomas suggests.—
Angela Haupt,
Time,
9 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
Topline The producer of a pair of aviator-style sunglasses that French President Emmanuel Macron sported at the World Economic Forum in Davos enjoyed a 28% bump in its stock price Thursday after the glasses sparked thousands of sarcastic jokes and memes online.—
Mary Whitfill Roeloffs,
Forbes.com,
22 Jan. 2026
-
But in hindsight, yes, that was most likely sarcastic.—
Assistant Editor,
Los Angeles Times,
21 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Bantering.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bantering. Accessed 26 Jan. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
