as in joking
marked by or expressive of mild or good-natured teasing
made kidding remarks about her lack of skills in the kitchen
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
as in fooling
Related Words
1
as in teasing
to make fun of in a good-natured way
everybody's kidding me about my new haircut
Synonyms & Similar Words
2
as in jesting
to make jokes
he always kids around about his "wild and crazy" life as an accountant
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of kidding
Alex Kirshner, New York Times, 26 Oct. 2025
Just kidding; Angie is using this as an opportunity to go after Lisa.
—Tom Smyth, Vulture, 8 Oct. 2025
The Athletic Nba Staff, New York Times, 30 Oct. 2025
The Aggies coach wasn’t kidding.
—Joe Davidson, Sacbee.com, 25 Oct. 2025
Just before Thursday’s taping Pence and Emanual met outside the greenroom, and each greeted each other warmly, quickly asking each other questions about their kids before anything else, while kidding with each other about a long unpaid bet.
—Ted Johnson, Deadline, 10 Oct. 2025
Okay, kidding about that last part.
—Elizabeth Logan, Glamour, 7 Oct. 2025
Pat Kelsey wasn't kidding about wanting the smoke.
—Leo Bertucci, The Courier-Journal, 2 Sep. 2025
In 2019, Lebanese depositors discovered that their banking system had, in effect, just been kidding about those savings accounts.
—Graeme Wood, The Atlantic, 2 Sep. 2025
And the creators aren't kidding about the show's sci-fi elements.
—EW.com, 14 Aug. 2025
Noun
Just kidding, that’s next Sunday.
—Alex Kirshner, New York Times, 26 Oct. 2025
Just kidding; Angie is using this as an opportunity to go after Lisa.
—Tom Smyth, Vulture, 8 Oct. 2025
Verb
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
The Aggies coach wasn’t kidding.
—Joe Davidson, Sacbee.com, 25 Oct. 2025
Just before Thursday’s taping Pence and Emanual met outside the greenroom, and each greeted each other warmly, quickly asking each other questions about their kids before anything else, while kidding with each other about a long unpaid bet.
—Ted Johnson, Deadline, 10 Oct. 2025
Okay, kidding about that last part.
—Elizabeth Logan, Glamour, 7 Oct. 2025
Pat Kelsey wasn't kidding about wanting the smoke.
—Leo Bertucci, The Courier-Journal, 2 Sep. 2025
In 2019, Lebanese depositors discovered that their banking system had, in effect, just been kidding about those savings accounts.
—Graeme Wood, The Atlantic, 2 Sep. 2025
And the creators aren't kidding about the show's sci-fi elements.
—EW.com, 14 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for kidding
Verb
-
Or, joking around with cruise staff, fans as well as his fellow industry mates.—
Essence,
Essence,
4 Nov. 2025
-
Others welcomed the move, while some suggested that Abbott was joking.—
Khaleda Rahman,
MSNBC Newsweek,
4 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
The movie has a brief mocking glimpse of MTV, just for a cheap laugh, when Springsteen is flipping channels between Badlands reruns.—
Rob Sheffield,
Rolling Stone,
2 Nov. 2025
-
The cast, for their part, have not let up on their mocking of him.—
Anna Kaufman,
USA Today,
6 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
The former Nickelodeon sitcom stars posted a new video on Instagram Wednesday, teasing what appeared to be a casual interaction as Peck sipped on a large drink in a plastic container.—
Joey Nolfi,
Entertainment Weekly,
6 Nov. 2025
-
The Japan Mobility Show is in full swing in Tokyo, and some of the largest automotive brands in the world are debuting and teasing vehicle concepts that could shape their future portfolios.—
Charles Singh,
USA Today,
5 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
His coaches, Roy Hallenbeck and Ken Williams, subjected him to the same ribbing as every other player, even teasing him about his preference for wearing the same size too-small jersey for all four years, so that by senior year his biceps stretched the sleeves to their limit.—
Ben Watanabe,
MSNBC Newsweek,
7 Nov. 2025
-
And secondly, the ribbing around the quarter-zip is comfy-looking and actually works to insulate by trapping air.—
Olivia Young,
Travel + Leisure,
4 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
The comedy is a tonal mess, veering between underdeveloped jokes and unearned sentiment.—
Angie Han,
HollywoodReporter,
7 Nov. 2025
-
How did Joy nearly die in the wilderness of Colorado, a place that, in a joke the film keeps repeating, is almost all white people?—
Owen Gleiberman,
Variety,
7 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Kidding.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/kidding. Accessed 11 Nov. 2025.
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