tease
verb (used with object)
to irritate or provoke with persistent petty distractions, trifling jests, or other annoyances, often in a playful way.
had been teasing
-
past perfect progressiveof tease.past perfect progressive
Used to describe an action that was ongoing continuously in the past up until another past event interrupted it.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
He also said that before being in ISP, he’d never met these three girls before, and they had been teasing him on and off.
From Slate ● Feb. 29, 2024
The comedic duo had been teasing a return, including a bit at the 2022 Emmy awards and a “Good Burger” parody skit on SNL in December.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 22, 2023
“This is Us” producer Ken Olin had been teasing his departure from Twitter days before he made it official, saying on Oct.
From Washington Times ● Nov. 1, 2022
For weeks, I had been teasing Faith, a chocolate ice cream fan, about getting a jar of pickles for dessert.
From Seattle Times ● Jan. 28, 2022
He had been teasing, merry, and now he wasn’t.
From "Strange the Dreamer" by Laini Taylor
