ridicule

[ rid-i-kyool ]
See synonyms for: ridiculeridiculedridiculesridiculing on Thesaurus.com

noun
  1. speech or action intended to cause contemptuous laughter at a person or thing; derision.

verb (used with object),rid·i·culed, rid·i·cul·ing.
  1. to deride; make fun of.

Origin of ridicule

1
First recorded in 1665–75; from Latin rīdiculum “a joke,” equivalent to rīdēre “to laugh” + -i--i- + -culum-cule2

synonym study For ridicule

2. Ridicule, deride, mock, taunt imply making game of a person, usually in an unkind, jeering way. To ridicule is to make fun of, either sportively and good-humoredly, or unkindly with the intention of humiliating: to ridicule a pretentious person. To deride is to assail one with scornful laughter: to deride a statement of belief. To mock is sometimes playfully, sometimes insultingly, to imitate and caricature the appearance or actions of another: She mocked the seriousness of his expression. To taunt is to call attention to something annoying or humiliating, usually maliciously and exultingly and often in the presence of others: to taunt a candidate about his defeat in an election.

Other words for ridicule

Opposites for ridicule

Other words from ridicule

  • rid·i·cul·er, noun
  • self-rid·i·cule, noun
  • un·rid·i·culed, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use ridicule in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for ridicule

ridicule

/ (ˈrɪdɪˌkjuːl) /


noun
  1. language or behaviour intended to humiliate or mock; derision

verb
  1. (tr) to make fun of, mock, or deride

Origin of ridicule

1
C17: from French, from Latin rīdiculus, from rīdēre to laugh

Derived forms of ridicule

  • ridiculer, noun

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012