as in fooling
Related Words
as in deriding
to make (someone or something) the object of unkind laughter
the term "big bang theory" was originally coined to ridicule the belief that the universe was created by a giant explosion
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of ridiculing
Jeanne Bonner, CNN Money, 16 Mar. 2026
Other potential candidates, such as Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Gavin Newsom, have achieved fame by berating and ridiculing the other side.
—Graeme Wood, The Atlantic, 3 Mar. 2026
Humiliating him would be like ridiculing the queen to her face.
—Roger Bennett, Fortune, 2 Mar. 2026
The temperature is rising in the Warner Bros Discovery chase, with key figures at Netflix and Paramount ridiculing the other companies’ merger proposals.
—Dade Hayes, Deadline, 23 Jan. 2026
But mostly, and kind of disturbingly, people enjoyed ridiculing it.
—Angela Andaloro, PEOPLE, 8 Jan. 2026
But this heavy tide of content ridiculing any notion of his lasting importance to the American republic suggests a far different fate.
—Miles Klee, Rolling Stone, 21 Dec. 2025
By the 1830s, politicians had stopped ridiculing America’s growing canal system.
—Matthew Smith, The Conversation, 20 Oct. 2025
The show opened with a skit mocking Hegseth, portrayed by comedian Colin Jost, ridiculing the Defense Secretary's address to military leaders in Quantico, Virginia, last week.
—Chandelis Duster, NPR, 5 Oct. 2025
Verb
The political rhetoric aimed at ridiculing Canada bothers Johnson.
—Jeanne Bonner, CNN Money, 16 Mar. 2026
Other potential candidates, such as Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Gavin Newsom, have achieved fame by berating and ridiculing the other side.
—Graeme Wood, The Atlantic, 3 Mar. 2026
Humiliating him would be like ridiculing the queen to her face.
—Roger Bennett, Fortune, 2 Mar. 2026
The temperature is rising in the Warner Bros Discovery chase, with key figures at Netflix and Paramount ridiculing the other companies’ merger proposals.
—Dade Hayes, Deadline, 23 Jan. 2026
But mostly, and kind of disturbingly, people enjoyed ridiculing it.
—Angela Andaloro, PEOPLE, 8 Jan. 2026
But this heavy tide of content ridiculing any notion of his lasting importance to the American republic suggests a far different fate.
—Miles Klee, Rolling Stone, 21 Dec. 2025
By the 1830s, politicians had stopped ridiculing America’s growing canal system.
—Matthew Smith, The Conversation, 20 Oct. 2025
The show opened with a skit mocking Hegseth, portrayed by comedian Colin Jost, ridiculing the Defense Secretary's address to military leaders in Quantico, Virginia, last week.
—Chandelis Duster, NPR, 5 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for ridiculing
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
-
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
-
The market learned a lesson embodied in the derisive acronym TACO: Trump Always Chickens Out.—
Matt Peterson,
CNBC,
13 Mar. 2026
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
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
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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
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His razzing of The Problem With Jon Stewart was the best grace note on the piece.—
Bethy Squires,
Vulture,
12 Dec. 2025
Adjective
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Reuters reported that BlackRock CEO Larry Fink, who hosted the dinner of some 200 people as co-chair of the World Economic Forum, ended the dinner after the heckling incident — before dessert was served.—
Ashleigh Fields,
The Hill,
22 Jan. 2026
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Vice President Vance appeared on FOX News Channel’s The Ingraham Angle hours after the heckling incident, telling the host about visiting with the national guardsmen and discussing recent changes to the city, while briefly mentioning the protesters.—
Jillian Frankel,
People.com,
21 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Ridiculing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/ridiculing. Accessed 29 Mar. 2026.
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