as in kidding
marked by or expressive of mild or good-natured teasing
grinned and gave him a joking nudge with my elbow
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
as in jesting
Related Words
1
as in funning
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 teasing
to make fun of in a good-natured way
oh, don't get offended, I was just joking you
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of joking
Jessica Lynch, Billboard, 28 Dec. 2025
Our poll’s options include a joking reference to Dan Marino.
—Greg Cote
december 20, Miami Herald, 20 Dec. 2025
But this outline is far more serious than White’s joking and explicit memoir, in which pleasure is always the goal.
—Emma Alpern, Vulture, 2 Dec. 2025
All three, dressed in formalwear for a photo shoot but with a joking, easy manner together, seem at home — this journalist, less so.
—Daniel D'addario, Variety, 12 Nov. 2025
Self was in a joking mood when asked about the squad’s stellar defensive play.
—Gary Bedore, Kansas City Star, 29 Oct. 2025
Jones eventually got into his joking bag, and Bleek took that opportunity to seriously set the record straight one last time.
—Armon Sadler, VIBE.com, 15 Oct. 2025
And their joking comments about their relationship never help the matter.
—Lizzie Lanuza, StyleCaster, 15 Oct. 2025
Only an Aries, like Lily, can take Barney’s jabs in a joking way.
—Lisa Stardust, PEOPLE, 19 Sep. 2025
Christopher Harris, CBS News, 27 Jan. 2026
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
The president’s allies have touted his reaction to the heckling and posted memes joking about it.
—Jared Gans, The Hill, 14 Jan. 2026
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
Jennifer Lawrence and Emma Stone exchanged texts on the morning the Screen Actors Guild nominations were announced this week, joking about the outcome after Stone landed a nod and Lawrence did not.
—Anna Tingley, Variety, 8 Jan. 2026
The lines were pretty long, both to order and to pick up, but people passed the 15-20 minutes chatting with each other and joking about the cold.
—Judith Martin, Dallas Morning News, 3 Jan. 2026
During that call, Patricia said the couple seemed joyful and were joking around.
—Abigail Adams, PEOPLE, 31 Dec. 2025
Noun
Cole follows up with a joking request to appear on an interlude on the forthcoming project, then asks whether West could send him a care package of clothes — which West agrees to — before exiting the stage.
—Jessica Lynch, Billboard, 28 Dec. 2025
Our poll’s options include a joking reference to Dan Marino.
—Greg Cote
december 20, Miami Herald, 20 Dec. 2025
But this outline is far more serious than White’s joking and explicit memoir, in which pleasure is always the goal.
—Emma Alpern, Vulture, 2 Dec. 2025
All three, dressed in formalwear for a photo shoot but with a joking, easy manner together, seem at home — this journalist, less so.
—Daniel D'addario, Variety, 12 Nov. 2025
Self was in a joking mood when asked about the squad’s stellar defensive play.
—Gary Bedore, Kansas City Star, 29 Oct. 2025
Jones eventually got into his joking bag, and Bleek took that opportunity to seriously set the record straight one last time.
—Armon Sadler, VIBE.com, 15 Oct. 2025
And their joking comments about their relationship never help the matter.
—Lizzie Lanuza, StyleCaster, 15 Oct. 2025
Only an Aries, like Lily, can take Barney’s jabs in a joking way.
—Lisa Stardust, PEOPLE, 19 Sep. 2025
Verb
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
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
The president’s allies have touted his reaction to the heckling and posted memes joking about it.
—Jared Gans, The Hill, 14 Jan. 2026
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
Jennifer Lawrence and Emma Stone exchanged texts on the morning the Screen Actors Guild nominations were announced this week, joking about the outcome after Stone landed a nod and Lawrence did not.
—Anna Tingley, Variety, 8 Jan. 2026
The lines were pretty long, both to order and to pick up, but people passed the 15-20 minutes chatting with each other and joking about the cold.
—Judith Martin, Dallas Morning News, 3 Jan. 2026
During that call, Patricia said the couple seemed joyful and were joking around.
—Abigail Adams, PEOPLE, 31 Dec. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for joking
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
-
Literally toxic lesbians — kidding.—
Fran Hoepfner,
Vulture,
1 Dec. 2025
-
Just kidding - but honestly not sold on him being the best player on a championship caliber team.—
The Athletic NBA Staff,
New York Times,
30 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Alongside the tape, the UK artist has also begun teasing a new album, Terrified.—
Hattie Lindert,
Pitchfork,
25 Jan. 2026
-
Hana can’t shake the feeling that someone is watching her, even teasing her.—
Kate Erbland,
IndieWire,
23 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
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
-
Subsequent rulings expanded the assault on our electoral system, including Citizens United, which equates people to corporations — more nonsense.—
Sun Sentinel Editorial Board,
Sun Sentinel,
30 Jan. 2026
-
There will be times when too much time on my hands leads to nonsense, like deep character dives on Instagram regarding the wives of ex-boyfriends.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
29 Jan. 2026
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
Adjective
-
Aikman appeared to be a bit quizzical.—
Ryan Gaydos,
FOXNews.com,
29 Oct. 2025
-
In a YouTube video, the robot’s head glances around with a quizzical expression and blinks in a way that is eerily lifelike.—
Mrigakshi Dixit,
Interesting Engineering,
22 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Joking.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/joking. Accessed 1 Feb. 2026.
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