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
Greg Rosenstein, NBC news, 22 Jan. 2026
Just kidding, Kim’s is a real and rational response, but Natalie is not having it.
—Brian Moylan, Vulture, 31 Dec. 2025
While fictional, Joel’s compassion and care can’t help but feel like counterprogramming to the cynical everyday horrors of violent deportations, open bigotry from leading politicians, measles outbreaks and the return of whole milk (kidding!
—Leah Asmelash, CNN Money, 18 Dec. 2025
Just kidding, that’s next Sunday.
—Alex Kirshner, New York Times, 26 Oct. 2025
On New Year's Eve, the weather was a balmy (kidding) 25 degrees Fahrenheit, and after spending hours braving the cold, peeling off our wet socks and stepping onto the warm wooden floors was pure heaven.
—Kayla Brock, Condé Nast Traveler, 31 Jan. 2025
Jason Beede, The Orlando Sentinel, 23 Mar. 2026
McKneely wasn’t kidding about the staples being removed.
—ABC News, 19 Mar. 2026
But Foley wasn’t really kidding.
—Tom Mulherin, Boston Herald, 15 Mar. 2026
Download a map and a donut passport or contact the donut concierge—I’m not kidding—who can customize your itinerary.
—Allison Tibaldi, USA Today, 10 Mar. 2026
There are also cool maps on the local prevalence of certain health conditions, from arthritis and asthma to cancer and high cholesterol to diabetes and depression to — not kidding here — where people have lost all their teeth.
—Teri Sforza, Oc Register, 11 Feb. 2026
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
The Aggies coach wasn’t kidding.
—Joe Davidson, Sacbee.com, 25 Oct. 2025
Noun
Here’s what winning a National Championship taught me about B2B sales 🏆 (kidding…kinda) 1.
—Greg Rosenstein, NBC news, 22 Jan. 2026
Just kidding, Kim’s is a real and rational response, but Natalie is not having it.
—Brian Moylan, Vulture, 31 Dec. 2025
While fictional, Joel’s compassion and care can’t help but feel like counterprogramming to the cynical everyday horrors of violent deportations, open bigotry from leading politicians, measles outbreaks and the return of whole milk (kidding!
—Leah Asmelash, CNN Money, 18 Dec. 2025
Just kidding, that’s next Sunday.
—Alex Kirshner, New York Times, 26 Oct. 2025
On New Year's Eve, the weather was a balmy (kidding) 25 degrees Fahrenheit, and after spending hours braving the cold, peeling off our wet socks and stepping onto the warm wooden floors was pure heaven.
—Kayla Brock, Condé Nast Traveler, 31 Jan. 2025
Verb
DeVos wasn’t kidding, and on Monday, in front of close friends and family, current and former Magic executives and employees and local community leaders, a plaque was unveiled with Martins’ name on it at the Orlando Magic Hall of Fame that’s located in Kia Center on the terrace level.
—Jason Beede, The Orlando Sentinel, 23 Mar. 2026
McKneely wasn’t kidding about the staples being removed.
—ABC News, 19 Mar. 2026
But Foley wasn’t really kidding.
—Tom Mulherin, Boston Herald, 15 Mar. 2026
Download a map and a donut passport or contact the donut concierge—I’m not kidding—who can customize your itinerary.
—Allison Tibaldi, USA Today, 10 Mar. 2026
There are also cool maps on the local prevalence of certain health conditions, from arthritis and asthma to cancer and high cholesterol to diabetes and depression to — not kidding here — where people have lost all their teeth.
—Teri Sforza, Oc Register, 11 Feb. 2026
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
The Aggies coach wasn’t kidding.
—Joe Davidson, Sacbee.com, 25 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for kidding
Noun
-
No fooling, April brings some pretty interesting surprises on Netflix.—
K. Thor Jensen,
PC Magazine,
27 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Comedian Charlie Berens also popularized the ritual, joking that it can be broken down into recognizable steps.—
Deirdre Bardolf,
FOXNews.com,
29 Mar. 2026
-
Over the radio, Bing Crosby is crooning, Bob Hope is joking, and news of the war — against Hitler, against Japan — keeps sizzling and crackling across the dial.—
Patt Morrison,
Los Angeles Times,
26 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
Afroman celebrated his legal victory in a video on Wednesday after winning a defamation lawsuit filed by several Ohio sheriff's deputies who accused the rapper of mocking and allegedly lying about them in music videos, following a 2022 raid on his home.—
Angeline Jane Bernabe,
ABC News,
19 Mar. 2026
-
Mutch was likely made aware of Chandler’s mocking verses, as some of Chandler’s biographers suggest.—
Jake Lundberg,
The Atlantic,
13 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks have been back on speaking terms for a few months thanks to the rerelease of their debut album, Buckingham Nicks, and now the diva himself is teasing that 2026 could serve as a reunion of sorts for the famously estranged exes.—
Devon Ivie,
Vulture,
27 Mar. 2026
-
There was no indication of the context of the posts, which racked up millions of views, with many online commenters theorizing the accounts could have been hacked or that an official was cryptically teasing something.—
Dylan Butts,
CNBC,
26 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
The jokes that really stood out, though, were all about our changing media landscape, whether the not-so-gentle ribbing of Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos finally embracing theaters, or Amazon being too much of a jack-of-all-trades, master of none.—
Marcus Jones,
IndieWire,
16 Mar. 2026
-
Team Italy captain Vinnie Pasquantino is likely to get some good-natured ribbing from a few of his Royals teammates on Monday night.—
Pete Grathoff,
Kansas City Star,
16 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
But over the course of nine innings and a few beers, there is plenty of time to catch up, joke around, give each other a hard time.—
Bill Goodykoontz,
AZCentral.com,
26 Mar. 2026
-
Last year, Carr warned broadcast stations after Kimmel made a joke about the response on the right to the assassination of Charlie Kirk.—
Ted Johnson,
Deadline,
26 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
Rowland expected a bit more razzing after Badger’s touchdown was wiped off the board.—
Chris Hays,
The Orlando Sentinel,
30 Mar. 2026
-
His razzing of The Problem With Jon Stewart was the best grace note on the piece.—
Bethy Squires,
Vulture,
12 Dec. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Kidding.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/kidding. Accessed 2 Apr. 2026.
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