jeer
1 Americanverb (used without object)
-
jeers,
present (3rd person singular)
-
jeered,
past participle, past
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jeering
present participle
verb (used with object)
-
jeers,
present (3rd person singular)
-
jeered,
past participle, past
-
jeering
present participle
noun
noun
verb
noun
Synonym Usage
See scoff 1.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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jeersimple
-
jeerssimple
-
have jeeredperfect
-
has jeeredperfect
-
am jeeringprogressive
-
are jeeringprogressive
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is jeeringprogressive
-
have been jeeringperfect progressive
-
has been jeeringperfect progressive
Past
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jeeredsimple
-
had jeeredperfect
-
was jeeringprogressive
-
were jeeringprogressive
-
had been jeeringperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of jeer1
1555–65; origin uncertain; compare Old English cēir clamor, akin to cēgan to call out
Origin of jeer2
First recorded in 1485–95; origin uncertain
Explanation
As a noun, jeer is the act of scoffing, taunting, or mocking. Think of it as an anti-cheer. If you offer cheers for the visiting team and jeers for the home team, you might not be too popular in the stands. As a verb, jeer means to laugh at in a mean way. Even if you did forget the words to the national anthem, it wasn't polite for the crowd to jeer. But don't feel too bad: the last singer remembered all the words and they jeered her anyway! Tough crowd.
Vocabulary lists containing jeer
List 3
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Ghost
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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.
See Examples For:
The phrase carries a derisive jeer, a suggestion that anyone born into fame and wealth gets to glide through life.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 16, 2025
Fans waited for the manager to head down the tunnel to jeer him, while some supporters had already questioned Marinakis, turning to his position in the Peter Taylor Stand to gesture their displeasure.
From BBC ● Oct. 18, 2025
Many say they plan to jeer him or otherwise protest his presence.
From New York Times ● May 25, 2024
D’Angelo Russell walked to the bench in the first quarter, goading the New Orleans crowd to jeer.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 16, 2024
When they looked into each other’s faces, they realized that their noses were now much bigger than they had been before, and this made them jeer.
From "The Girl Who Married a Lion: and Other Tales from Africa" by Alexander Mccall Smith
And when Alalshikh thanked the American from the stage, his name was met with jeers from sections of the crowd.
From BBC ● Sep. 30, 2026
The boss of German carmaker Volkswagen warned workers on Tuesday to brace for more job losses, earning boos and jeers from the crowd, as the crisis-hit company faces a drastic round of cost-cutting.
From Barron's ● Aug. 25, 2026
As McDonnell spoke, the commission room erupted in jeers as several people accused the chief of misrepresenting what happened.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 11, 2026
And while Grande later insisted the break was pre-planned and not “reactive or impulsive,” there’s no doubt the announcement was timed to dull the cacophony of both the jeers and cheers.
From Salon ● Aug. 8, 2026
It was even more deafening than the jeers immediately around me.
From "Warriors Don't Cry: A Searing Memoir of the Battle to Integrate Little Rock's Central High" by Melba Pattillo Beals
He was jeered the loudest of any player when England played France in Paris in March.
From BBC ● Sep. 16, 2026
Alvarez started on the bench on Sunday but was jeered while warming up and there were even louder boos when he came on in the 66th minute.
From BBC ● Aug. 26, 2026
They jeered even louder and longer as he took the mound in the bottom of the first inning.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 5, 2026
“I don’t know what y’all are whining about,” he once said as the crowd jeered him after yet another victory.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 21, 2026
"Do you not understand what private means?" the coach jeered.
From "Ghost" by Jason Reynolds
Things got even wilder once the film went into release: At a preview in California, a jeering audience spotted Warner Bros. executives and chased them out into the street.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 27, 2026
Blume's speech was repeatedly interrupted by jeering and whistling, a person present at the meeting told AFP, and workers held aloft signs saying: "Don't balance your books with our jobs".
From Barron's ● Aug. 25, 2026
The first lady insists that the jeering did not upset her.
From BBC ● May 17, 2026
“This is a family town,” the arresting officer tells jeering onlookers as he and the two others handcuff Gamble.
From Slate ● May 4, 2026
Even the children were scolded if they used the term lightly at play, jeering at a teammate who missed a catch or stumbled in a race.
From "The Giver" by Lois Lowry
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
