1,400 new words in our dictionary! — Parasocial, glow-up, promposal & more
1,400 new words in our dictionary! — More

jokes 1 of 2

noun

plural of joke
1
as in laughs
something said or done to cause laughter he was known for his hilarious jokes

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance
2
as in parodies
a poor, insincere, or insulting imitation of something her rendition of the national anthem is a joke

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in fools
a person or thing that is made fun of having lost his looks and his voice years ago, these days he's just a show business joke and fodder for late-night comedy

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

jokes

2 of 2

verb

present tense third-person singular of joke
1
as in kids
to make jokes he was known for his ability to joke about his lack of anything resembling a social life

Synonyms & Similar Words
2
as in teases
to make fun of in a good-natured way oh, don't get offended, I was just joking you

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 jokes
Noun
The set includes a variety of items, including a new book entitled Slappy’s Book of Pranks, which includes directions for over 20 different pranks, Slappy trivia, a history of pranking, jokes and an introduction by Stine himself. — Carly Tagen-Dye, PEOPLE, 18 Sep. 2026 Beyond jokes, Pitt plays a military veteran in the movie, which is out on September 25. — Rachel Burchfield, InStyle, 17 Sep. 2026 Ricky Mena of Heart of a Hero, the man behind the mask, has spent more than a decade visiting children in hospitals and their homes, bringing jokes, encouragement and a little superhero magic to families going through difficult times. — Melissa May, CBS News, 16 Sep. 2026 Teesside instead saw itself as half-forgotten by the UK government, then the butt of jokes and disparaging coverage. — Michael Walker, New York Times, 15 Sep. 2026 The former costars’ jokes prompted a roar of laughter at the awards show. — Wesley Stenzel, Entertainment Weekly, 15 Sep. 2026 The talented singer turned the temperature down and did so while cracking some jokes. — David Hookstead Outkick, FOXNews.com, 15 Sep. 2026 There are nine songs in total, and each toy has three of them, along with 40 lines of jokes and phrases per character. — Owen Carry, USA Today, 15 Sep. 2026 But aside from a few risky (if not risque) jokes, Hargitay brought something unique to the Emmys stage, at least for the first time in 15 years. — Jon Blistein, Rolling Stone, 15 Sep. 2026
Verb
Johnson jokes, miming a phone to her ear as Cherkovskiy puts his head in hands. — Madeleine Marr, Miami Herald, 5 Sep. 2026 When the dog doesn’t return, someone jokes that maybe it’s gone to see the new Rin Tin Tin movie. — Cynthia Zarin, Harpers Magazine, 1 Sep. 2026 Chris Cooper, a political scientist at Western Carolina University (of no relation to the candidate), sometimes jokes that Roy Cooper is like Mister Rogers, if Mister Rogers carried a switchblade. — David A. Graham, The Atlantic, 27 Aug. 2026 Another officer jokes about the details being in a book one day. — Taylor Romine, CNN Money, 26 Aug. 2026 Chris Branaman, 53, jokes that his retirement will be spent as a Walmart greeter. — Aimee Picchi, CBS News, 24 Aug. 2026 The bride jokes that everyone was so excited to celebrate that the party almost took them out. — Shelby Wax, Vogue, 14 Aug. 2026 Creighton jokes, explaining that making the film accessible to people is far more interesting to her than some sort of contrived celebrity impact campaign. — Zac Ntim, Deadline, 7 Aug. 2026 Montana jokes as a wide smile peeks out from under his beard. — Selena Fragassi, SPIN, 30 July 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for jokes
  1. laughs
  2. parodies
  3. fools
  4. kids
  5. teases
  6. gags
  7. caricatures
  8. targets
Noun
  • Again, the things of life, the ups and downs, the laughs and the tears — this is Mike Leigh at his most humane and heartwarming in a film that seems to be about nothing really, but the universal truth of it all is about everything.
    — Pete Hammond, Deadline, 4 Sep. 2026
  • Having a bunch of huge favorites means one of them is about to see its entire hopeful offseason culminate in immediate disaster as everyone points and laughs.
    — Jason Kirk, New York Times, 3 Sep. 2026
Definition of laughs
Noun
  • His high-water mark was without a doubt the United Way commercial, one of the best commercial parodies of the last 25 years.
    — Matt Reigle OutKick, FOXNews.com, 9 Sep. 2026
  • The show was a phenomenon that continues to inspire copycats and parodies; Hansen emerged as an icon for some, and a meme for others.
    — David Canfield, HollywoodReporter, 3 Sep. 2026
Definition of parodies
Noun
  • Like Rick Nelson’s fools, the Zellners also rush in where angels fear to tread, and their love for the bizarre, the cool and the crazy is, like the epidemic of emotions facing the Alpha Gang, wildly infectious.
    — Damon Wise, Deadline, 14 Sep. 2026
  • Some want to live vicariously through them, while others joke about the poor fools who fell for their tactics.
    — Owen Carry, USA Today, 3 Sep. 2026
Definition of fools
Verb
  • What everyday skills should kids practice before the first week of school?
    — Ashley Lynch, Kansas City Star, 10 Aug. 2026
  • Running under the surface of the film is the anxiety that kids his age are lucky to secure any job, even one as low-paying and exploitative as Erika’s studio assistant.
    — Amy Nicholson, Los Angeles Times, 30 July 2026
Definition of kids
Verb
  • That’s namely all the interlude chapters — police reports, 911 calls, courtroom transcripts, newspaper clippings, and scientific research into the telekinetic gene that collectively teases a larger world.
    — Entertainment Weekly, Entertainment Weekly, 15 Sep. 2026
  • The film teases a more intimate connection between the pair throughout but frustratingly walks back from advancing this development as anything more than a tantalizing possibility.
    — Marshall Shaffer, IndieWire, 9 Sep. 2026
Definition of teases
Noun
  • Clever and snappy, fresh and silly, a winning combination of classic Looney Tunes gags and contemporary concerns (the press notes mention many influences including, no joke, The Insider).
    — Bethy Squires, Vulture, 28 Aug. 2026
  • But there’s more than gags here; the episode also delves into the gang’s unease with their changing lives, as well as the reservations everyone but Ted seems to have about his engagement to Stella (Sarah Chalke).
    — Erin Strecker, Entertainment Weekly, 22 Aug. 2026
Definition of gags
Noun
  • Civil rights groups, including the Anti-Defamation League, condemned the outfit as resembling historical anti-Jewish caricatures.
    — Alejandro Avila OutKick, FOXNews.com, 14 Sep. 2026
  • The meme machine has produced images of Trump as Jesus, racist caricatures of the Obamas and crude attacks on protesters, stirring controversy without improving his already anemic approval ratings.
    — Josh Boak, Los Angeles Times, 9 Sep. 2026
Definition of caricatures
Noun
  • Chinese researchers have outlined a future tank that could generate its own power and strike targets hundreds of miles away.
    — Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 16 Sep. 2026
  • For pass catchers, market share is targets divided by team pass attempts.
    — Michael Salfino, New York Times, 15 Sep. 2026
Definition of targets

Browse Nearby Words

jokers
jokes
jokester
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Jokes.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/jokes. Accessed 19 Sep. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Why do we use apostrophes to show possession?

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

The Exceptions of '-s' and '-es' Plurals

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Back to School Vocabulary

Words from the 'Odyssey'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Words of the Week - Sept. 18
See More

Popular

See More

Why do we use apostrophes to show possession?

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Back to School Vocabulary
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
crayons-in-a-circle
Guess the Color Quiz Questions that use the whole box of crayons.
See All