persiflage - Definitions from Dictionary.com

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Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This

per·si·flage

Audio Help [pur-suh-flahzh, pair-] Pronunciation Key

–noun

1.	light, bantering talk or writing.

2.	a frivolous or flippant style of treating a subject.

[Origin: 1750–60; < F, deriv. of persifler to banter, equiv. to per- per- + siffler to whistle, hiss < LL sifilāre, for L sībilāre; see sibilant, -age

]

—Synonyms 1. banter, badinage, jesting.

Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.

Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.
persiflage

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American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

per·si·flage Audio Help (pûr'sə-fläzh') Pronunciation Key
n.

Light good-natured talk; banter.
Light or frivolous manner of discussing a subject.

[French, from persifler, to banter : per-, intensive pref. (from Latin; see per-) + siffler, to whistle (from Old French, from Late Latin sīfilāre, alteration of Latin sībilāre).]

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Online Etymology Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
persiflage

1757, from Fr. persiflage, from persifler "to banter," from L. per- "through" + Fr. siffler "to whistle, hiss," from collateral form of L. sibilare "to hiss," possibly of imitative origin.

WordNet - Cite This Source - Share This

persiflage
noun
light teasing

Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

Persiflage

Per`si`flage"\, n. [F., fr. persifler to quiz, fr. L. per + siffler to whistle, hiss, L. sibilare, sifilare.] Frivolous or bantering talk; a frivolous manner of treating any subject, whether serious or otherwise; light raillery. --Hannah More.

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