jeer

¹ American  

[jeer] / dʒɪər /

verb (used without object)

1. to speak or shout derisively; scoff or gibe rudely.

   Don't jeer unless you can do better.

   Synonyms:

   jest, sneer

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verb (used with object)

1. to shout derisively at; taunt.

   Synonyms:

   fleer, flout, ridicule, deride

2. to treat with scoffs or derision; mock.

   Synonyms:

   fleer, flout, ridicule, deride

3. to drive away by derisive shouts (followed by out of, off, etc.).

   They jeered the speaker off the stage.

noun

1. a jeering utterance; derisive or rude gibe.

jeer ² American  

[jeer] / dʒɪər /

noun

Nautical.

1. any of various combinations of tackles for raising or lowering heavy yards.

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jeer British  

/ dʒɪə /

verb

1. (often foll by at) to laugh or scoff (at a person or thing); mock

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noun

1. a remark or cry of derision; gibe; taunt

Related Words

See scoff ¹.

Other Word Forms

• jeerer
  noun
• jeering
  adjective
• jeeringly
  adverb
• unjeered
  adjective
• unjeering
  adjective

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.

Example Sentences

She brackets the body of her book with chapters that acknowledge the predicament of the modern parent—and offer encouragement—but otherwise she has written straight history that seeks to inform rather than to jeer or blame.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 20, 2026

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

The broad storytelling calls back to a kind of retro filmmaking based on pure sensation and emotion, in which we cheer for the heroes and jeer for the villains.

From Los Angeles Times • May 31, 2024

Many say they plan to jeer him or otherwise protest his presence.

From New York Times • May 25, 2024

He walked slowly into the middle of the clearing and looked steadily at the skull that gleamed as white as ever the conch had done and seemed to jeer at him cynically.

From "Lord of the Flies" by William Golding

Related Words

• hoot
• quip
• ridicule
• scoff
• sneer
• snipe
• taunt