as in taunting
to attack repeatedly with mean put-downs or insults
the players were heckled by disappointed fans
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of heckling
Ashleigh Fields, The Hill, 22 Jan. 2026
Vice President Vance appeared on FOX News Channel’s The Ingraham Angle hours after the heckling incident, telling the host about visiting with the national guardsmen and discussing recent changes to the city, while briefly mentioning the protesters.
—Jillian Frankel, People.com, 21 Aug. 2025
Brie Stimson, FOXNews.com, 10 Mar. 2026
Jeff Probst heckling contestants during challenges.
—Kristen Geil, Outside, 24 Feb. 2026
The project drew heckling from some residents and hours of debate before passing Feb 19.
—Miami Herald Archives, Miami Herald, 23 Feb. 2026
On weekends for more than five years, volunteers at the East Plano Islamic Center have braved wind, cold and, recently, heckling protesters to pass out boxes of food to a long line of expectant cars.
—Dallas Morning News, 5 Feb. 2026
The unarmed, nonviolent citizens who have been following ICE agents, blowing whistles to alert people to their presence, even heckling and mocking them, are not just trying to impede their work.
—Gal Beckerman, The Atlantic, 19 Jan. 2026
Later, things get uncomfortable when a group of high school boys start hanging around the bleachers and heckling the team.
—Allison Degrushe, Entertainment Weekly, 18 Jan. 2026
Scholes and Butt grizzle about the old times like a Mancunian version of The Muppets’ Statler and Waldorf, heckling the cast from their box seats.
—Daniel Taylor, New York Times, 17 Jan. 2026
According to several witnesses mentioned in the report, the victim and suspect had been heckling each other.
—Colleen Cronin, Boston Herald, 12 Jan. 2026
Adjective
Reuters reported that BlackRock CEO Larry Fink, who hosted the dinner of some 200 people as co-chair of the World Economic Forum, ended the dinner after the heckling incident — before dessert was served.
—Ashleigh Fields, The Hill, 22 Jan. 2026
Vice President Vance appeared on FOX News Channel’s The Ingraham Angle hours after the heckling incident, telling the host about visiting with the national guardsmen and discussing recent changes to the city, while briefly mentioning the protesters.
—Jillian Frankel, People.com, 21 Aug. 2025
Verb
The royal family was met with heckling protesters in London this week for their largest public gathering since former Prince Andrew’s arrest last month.
—Brie Stimson, FOXNews.com, 10 Mar. 2026
Jeff Probst heckling contestants during challenges.
—Kristen Geil, Outside, 24 Feb. 2026
The project drew heckling from some residents and hours of debate before passing Feb 19.
—Miami Herald Archives, Miami Herald, 23 Feb. 2026
On weekends for more than five years, volunteers at the East Plano Islamic Center have braved wind, cold and, recently, heckling protesters to pass out boxes of food to a long line of expectant cars.
—Dallas Morning News, 5 Feb. 2026
The unarmed, nonviolent citizens who have been following ICE agents, blowing whistles to alert people to their presence, even heckling and mocking them, are not just trying to impede their work.
—Gal Beckerman, The Atlantic, 19 Jan. 2026
Later, things get uncomfortable when a group of high school boys start hanging around the bleachers and heckling the team.
—Allison Degrushe, Entertainment Weekly, 18 Jan. 2026
Scholes and Butt grizzle about the old times like a Mancunian version of The Muppets’ Statler and Waldorf, heckling the cast from their box seats.
—Daniel Taylor, New York Times, 17 Jan. 2026
According to several witnesses mentioned in the report, the victim and suspect had been heckling each other.
—Colleen Cronin, Boston Herald, 12 Jan. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for heckling
Adjective
-
To get a sense of his whole deal, look no further than the half-mocking, half-earnest title of his latest album, Country!—
Jonathan Bernstein,
Rolling Stone,
23 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Cellphone video posted by Jada's aunt on social media shows Jada and another girl yelling and taunting each other while standing a good distance apart.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
12 Mar. 2026
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Her reasoning is frustrating, but understandable — her husband (Yao), now a vampire, is taunting her outside, and Remmick has threatened to kill her daughter back in town.—
Randall Colburn,
Entertainment Weekly,
12 Mar. 2026
Adjective
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This was met by derisive laughter in the locker room, where, coincidentally, the director of the FBI was chugging a beer and joining in the uproar.—
DP Opinion,
Denver Post,
28 Feb. 2026
-
The revelation quickly made headlines, and the social-media peanut gallery was sharply derisive.—
Emma Sandler,
Vogue,
15 Dec. 2025
Verb
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Netflix’s live-action One Piece is deep into production on Season 3, with the beloved Arabasta arc taking center stage, a wave of new casting locked in, and stars teasing a darker, more mature tone ahead.—
Hanna Wickes,
Miami Herald,
16 Mar. 2026
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Rivian has been teasing the R2 for a while now, dangling the promise of a smaller, cheaper, more attainable version of its beloved R1S in front of adventure-hungry buyers who couldn’t quite stretch to the $77,000-plus sticker of its halo SUV.—
Kevin Sintumuang,
Outside,
13 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
Then, again, the needling cold.—
Roey Leonardi,
The Atlantic,
22 Feb. 2026
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In cases of significant thinning, Small recommends procedures like platelet-rich plasma (PRP) therapy or micro-needling.—
Rebecca Strong,
USA Today,
10 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Heckling.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/heckling. Accessed 18 Mar. 2026.
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