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gibe1

or jibe

[jahyb]
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verb (used without object), gibed, gib·ing.
  1. to utter mocking or scoffing words; jeer.
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verb (used with object), gibed, gib·ing.
  1. to taunt; deride.
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noun
  1. a taunting or sarcastic remark.
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Origin of gibe1

1560–70; perhaps < Middle French giber to handle roughly, shake, derivative of gibe staff, billhook
Related formsgib·er, noungib·ing·ly, adverb
Can be confusedgibe gybe jib jibe jive

Synonyms

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1. mock, sneer, gird. 2. ridicule, twit, fleer. 3. sneer, scoff, jeer.

gibe2

[jahyb]
verb (used with or without object), gibed, gib·ing, noun
  1. jibe1.
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jibe1

or gibe, gybe, jib, jibb

[jahyb]Nautical
verb (used without object), jibed, jib·ing.
  1. to shift from one side to the other when running before the wind, as a fore-and-aft sail or its boom.
  2. to alter course so that a fore-and-aft sail shifts in this manner.
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verb (used with object), jibed, jib·ing.
  1. to cause to jibe.
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noun
  1. the act of jibing.
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Origin of jibe1

1685–95; variant of gybe < Dutch gijben, more commonly gijpen
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words

sarcasmswipejabdumpmockeryscoffingtauntjeerdigput-downderisionslamjokesneercomebackscofffloutdisrespectderidescorn

Examples from the Web for gibe

Historical Examples

  • Come, before he comes to gibe us for having heeded a moment.

    The Armourer's Prentices

    Charlotte M. Yonge

  • There came a new note into the woman's voice as she answered the gibe.

    Within the Law

    Marvin Dana

  • But even that gibe hinted at a recklessness that matched her own and gave her comfort now.

    Louisiana Lou

    William West Winter

  • But not even that gibe could stir M. Binet out of his lethargy of content.

    Scaramouche

    Rafael Sabatini

  • To shock the one or gibe at the other were a blasphemy he simply couldn't contemplate.

    Love and Lucy

    Maurice Henry Hewlett

British Dictionary definitions for gibe

gibe1

jibe

verb
  1. to make jeering or scoffing remarks (at); taunt
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noun
  1. a derisive or provoking remark
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Derived Formsgiber or jiber, noungibingly or jibingly, adverb

Word Origin

C16: perhaps from Old French giber to treat roughly, of uncertain origin

gibe2

verb, noun nautical
  1. a variant spelling of gybe
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jibe1

jib or jibb (dʒɪb)

verb, noun
  1. nautical variants of gybe
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jibe2

verb
  1. a variant spelling of gibe 1
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Derived Formsjiber, nounjibingly, adverb

jibe3

verb
  1. (intr) informal to agree; accord; harmonize
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Word Origin

C19: of unknown origin
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

Word Origin and History for gibe

v.

alternative spelling of jibe.

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jibe

v.

"agree, fit," 1813, of unknown origin, perhaps a figurative extension of earlier jib, gybe (v.) "shift a sail or boom" (see jib). OED, however, suggests a phonetic variant of chime, as if meaning "to chime in with, to be in harmony." Related: Jibed; jibes; jibing.

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jibe

n.

1560s, perhaps from Middle French giber "to handle roughly," or an alteration of gaber "to mock."

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper