as in sardonic
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as in ridiculing
Related Words
1
as in parodying
to copy or exaggerate (someone or something) in order to make fun of
team members good-naturedly mocked the coach's familiar bellow
Synonyms & Similar Words
2
as in taunting
to make (someone or something) the object of unkind laughter
the fashion gurus loved to mock the famous couple for their unsophisticated clothes
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in disobeying
to go against the commands, prohibitions, or rules of
a person willing to mock the religious prohibition against working on the Sabbath
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of mocking
Jonathan Bernstein, Rolling Stone, 23 Sep. 2025
Ben Church, CNN Money, 20 Apr. 2026
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
The decision received some mocking on social media.
—Ryan Gaydos, FOXNews.com, 8 Mar. 2026
Strip Law is a show that prefers to keep everything very close to the surface, including its case-of-the-week mocking of how surface-level Las Vegas is — even if roughly half those cases don’t have much to do with Vegas at all.
—Daniel Fienberg, HollywoodReporter, 20 Feb. 2026
In his verse, Bad Bunny directly addresses the chats, calling attention to Rosselló’s mocking of the dead from Hurricane María and his rampant homophobia.
—Julyssa Lopez, Rolling Stone, 26 Jan. 2026
With a mocking appreciation for her overbearing family and caustic wit for her younger self, Yajia warmly works from the thesis that kids are extraordinarily weird, scary, and kind-of-dumb creatures who really don’t know any better.
—Brian Boone, Vulture, 12 Dec. 2025
The cast, for their part, have not let up on their mocking of him.
—Anna Kaufman, USA Today, 6 Oct. 2025
Wendy Bowman, Robb Report, 12 June 2026
Trump has become obsessed with seeking vengeance against his political foes and has abandoned his promise to bring prices down, even mocking the nation’s affordability crisis.
—Jonathan Lemire, The Atlantic, 12 June 2026
Supporters jokingly call themselves unemployed and chronically online, while videos and memes mocking unemployment, corruption and political dysfunction have attracted millions of views.
—ABC News, 11 June 2026
Last year, Karp went on a week-long diatribe mocking investors who sold their shares in the company, as Palantir’s stock price dipped by over 11 percent.
—Joe Wilkins, Futurism, 11 June 2026
The group even made a fundraising video mocking the idea they were funded by China on social media.
—Geoff Brumfiel, NPR, 10 June 2026
Barcelona made an initial offer to Atletico Madrid just over a week ago for €100million, and the Madrid club posted a series of messages on social media mocking the offer.
—James McNicholas, New York Times, 9 June 2026
For young men feeling dejected by the public conversation about toxic masculinity, Tate’s celebrations of manhood were galvanizing, and his mocking assaults on feminism felt bracingly irreverent.
—Heidi Blake, New Yorker, 8 June 2026
That staffer was later fired by Collins after posting a social media comment on behalf of the Collins campaign mocking a woman who attempted suicide after accusing Matt Lauer of rape.
—Irene Wright, USA Today, 1 June 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
Noun
Arteta and his Arsenal squad have, of course, downplayed the noise around the club this season, arguing that the widespread mocking doesn’t impact the inner sanctum of the team.
—Ben Church, CNN Money, 20 Apr. 2026
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
The decision received some mocking on social media.
—Ryan Gaydos, FOXNews.com, 8 Mar. 2026
Strip Law is a show that prefers to keep everything very close to the surface, including its case-of-the-week mocking of how surface-level Las Vegas is — even if roughly half those cases don’t have much to do with Vegas at all.
—Daniel Fienberg, HollywoodReporter, 20 Feb. 2026
In his verse, Bad Bunny directly addresses the chats, calling attention to Rosselló’s mocking of the dead from Hurricane María and his rampant homophobia.
—Julyssa Lopez, Rolling Stone, 26 Jan. 2026
With a mocking appreciation for her overbearing family and caustic wit for her younger self, Yajia warmly works from the thesis that kids are extraordinarily weird, scary, and kind-of-dumb creatures who really don’t know any better.
—Brian Boone, Vulture, 12 Dec. 2025
The cast, for their part, have not let up on their mocking of him.
—Anna Kaufman, USA Today, 6 Oct. 2025
Verb
The intended insult was Dorit’s payback after Sutton spent the season mocking her costar’s wallet size.
—Wendy Bowman, Robb Report, 12 June 2026
Trump has become obsessed with seeking vengeance against his political foes and has abandoned his promise to bring prices down, even mocking the nation’s affordability crisis.
—Jonathan Lemire, The Atlantic, 12 June 2026
Supporters jokingly call themselves unemployed and chronically online, while videos and memes mocking unemployment, corruption and political dysfunction have attracted millions of views.
—ABC News, 11 June 2026
Last year, Karp went on a week-long diatribe mocking investors who sold their shares in the company, as Palantir’s stock price dipped by over 11 percent.
—Joe Wilkins, Futurism, 11 June 2026
The group even made a fundraising video mocking the idea they were funded by China on social media.
—Geoff Brumfiel, NPR, 10 June 2026
Barcelona made an initial offer to Atletico Madrid just over a week ago for €100million, and the Madrid club posted a series of messages on social media mocking the offer.
—James McNicholas, New York Times, 9 June 2026
For young men feeling dejected by the public conversation about toxic masculinity, Tate’s celebrations of manhood were galvanizing, and his mocking assaults on feminism felt bracingly irreverent.
—Heidi Blake, New Yorker, 8 June 2026
That staffer was later fired by Collins after posting a social media comment on behalf of the Collins campaign mocking a woman who attempted suicide after accusing Matt Lauer of rape.
—Irene Wright, USA Today, 1 June 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for mocking
Adjective
-
John Pankow played Ira, Paul’s sardonic, womanizing cousin.—
Declan Gallagher,
Entertainment Weekly,
6 June 2026
-
The sardonic trend spoke to what Ukrainian and Russian military analysts say could be a deeper shift in the course of the war, which began in 2022 when Russian forces launched their full-scale invasion of Ukraine.—
David Brennan,
ABC News,
4 June 2026
Noun
-
My heart beats faster just thinking about all of them, no kidding.—
Mike Lupica,
New York Daily News,
13 June 2026
-
Just kidding, massage certificate is the way to go.—
Bethy Squires,
Vulture,
10 May 2026
Verb
-
Regardless, everyone approves of Kiana, with Zack good-naturedly parodying her sunglasses and the girls encouraging him to lock it down despite the tumultuous relationships their friend group seems to attract.—
Ile-Ife Okantah,
Vulture,
7 May 2026
-
Influencer comedians like Madison Humphrey and Mitsy Sanderson have built large platforms parodying awkward moments.—
Rachel Hale,
USA Today,
25 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
The internet absolutely let Clavicular have it, ridiculing the influencer with a barrage of memes.—
Austin Perry OutKick,
FOXNews.com,
16 May 2026
-
North Korea conducted a series of tests last week that state media said involved various new weapons systems, including ballistic missiles armed with cluster-bomb warheads, while its senior officials issued crude statements ridiculing South Korean hopes for warmer relations.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
13 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Jakubowski faces charges of second-degree reckless endangerment, risk of injury to a minor, reckless driving, interfering with an officer, improper use of maker plates, possession of drug paraphernalia, disobeying the signal of an officer and failure to maintain the proper lane.—
Justin Muszynski,
Hartford Courant,
29 May 2026
-
Icarus disobeying his father Daedalus and flying too close to the sun.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
26 May 2026
Adjective
-
Educators were fired for making insensitive comments about him on their personal social-media accounts; a firefighter in Toledo lost his job for posting a derisive eulogy on Facebook; various airline employees were suspended for disparaging Kirk online.—
Brady Brickner-Wood,
New Yorker,
29 Apr. 2026
-
But this time, American allies have balked at Trump’s request to send warships to help transport oil through the strait, suggesting there is a limit to how far Europe will go to keep Trump onside in Ukraine and demonstrating the upshot of Trump’s derisive attitude toward alliances.—
Christian Edwards,
CNN Money,
16 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
No fooling, April brings some pretty interesting surprises on Netflix.—
K. Thor Jensen,
PC Magazine,
27 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Now, in a case of life imitating art, Cameron himself is being accused of corporate extraction by an Indigenous woman.—
Petala Ironcloud,
Air Mail,
6 June 2026
-
In a case of life imitating art, this whodunnit explores the investigation behind her disappearance, strangely resembling one of Christie’s own novels, where everyone in her life becomes a suspect, including her brother, Monty (Trevena).—
Alex Ritman,
Variety,
1 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Mocking.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/mocking. Accessed 16 Jun. 2026.
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