as in joking
marked by or expressive of mild or good-natured teasing
made jesting comments about my need for serious fashion advice
Synonyms & Similar Words
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as in joke
good-natured teasing or exchanging of clever remarks
lots of laughter and elbow-nudging jesting at family reunions
Synonyms & Similar Words
as in bantering
to make jokes
when I asked my sister for a loan, she laughingly replied, "Surely you jest!"
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Recent Examples of jesting
Lynnette Nicholas, Parents, 8 Dec. 2025
Kimi Robinson, USA Today, 10 Jan. 2026
Noun
Language There’s some crude language, jesting, and mature comedic themes, but but nothing the modern tween or teen hasn’t seen or heard before.
—Lynnette Nicholas, Parents, 8 Dec. 2025
Verb
So much so that a cheeky George Clooney let loose a certain four-letter word while jesting about a fellow actor.
—Kimi Robinson, USA Today, 10 Jan. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for jesting
Noun
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But for too many of us, that proved an empty promise, the concept of work-life balance a cruel joke for women burned out from trying to take care of children and aging relatives, advance their careers (or even tread water in them), and meet other seemingly countless obligations.—
Phaedra Trethan,
USA Today,
29 Jan. 2026
-
Verizon had no say over the fate of an actor who once played a fictional ad icon on its behalf, but consumers got the joke.—
Brian Steinberg,
Variety,
29 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Kevin Stefanski walked into his introductory news conference Tuesday smiling, joking about the weather, and sounding exactly like a coach ready to get to work.—
Christopher Harris,
CBS News,
27 Jan. 2026
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The ‘Top Gun’ and meme effect Across social networks, users have latched onto the cinematic quality of Macron’s look, repeatedly referencing Top Gun and joking that the French leader appeared ready to step into a cockpit rather than a conference hall.—
Nick Lichtenberg,
Fortune,
22 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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Tom Lester played Eb Dawson, the Douglases' sarcastic young farmhand.—
Meredith Wilshere,
PEOPLE,
25 Jan. 2026
-
The worse things are going, the more bitter and sarcastic my humor sometimes gets.—
Kenna Hughes-Castleberry,
Space.com,
24 Jan. 2026
Noun
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That anything-for-a-laugh ethos is not a flaw in his canon but its animating principle.—
Seth Abramovitch,
HollywoodReporter,
30 Jan. 2026
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The pair shared warm cups of oatmeal in the car, staying warm and having a laugh together about the wild turn the weather had taken.—
Kendall Malinchock,
USA Today,
29 Jan. 2026
Noun
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With time, their caustic raillery transforms into sincere attachment.—
Charlie Tyson,
The Atlantic,
13 May 2021
-
French’s evocation of place, a rural way of life and overall creepiness are superb, as is the dialogue, a festival of Irish raillery and repartee.—
Washington Post,
Washington Post,
14 Oct. 2020
Noun
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All of the familiar tropes are there, from the numerous pop songs peppering the action (including one by Phil Collins, just to remind you of Miami Vice) to the profane banter between the two main characters to the endless fights, shootouts and chases to the colorful villain.—
Frank Scheck,
HollywoodReporter,
26 Jan. 2026
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The series’ penultimate novel also serves up the requisite Regency Bad Dad (™) for Gareth and extra helpings of falling-in-love banter, which is saying something given Quinn’s penchant for quippy characters.—
Sara Netzley,
Entertainment Weekly,
25 Jan. 2026
Noun
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The action flows, the badinage is fast and fun.—
Owen Gleiberman,
Variety,
28 Aug. 2025
-
Each bus has a pair of hosts, whose badinage is corny but crowd-pleasing.—
Patricia Marx,
New Yorker,
5 May 2025
Noun
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Brooks’s years honing his craft writing prickly characters and witty repartee ensures that not all of this scans as mindless escapism.—
Vikram Murthi,
IndieWire,
10 Dec. 2025
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The repartee arrived ahead of the reunion’s kiss-off date in Brazil this weekend.—
Kory Grow,
Rolling Stone,
20 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Jesting.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/jesting. Accessed 2 Feb. 2026.
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