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ridicule
[ rid-i-kyool ]
/ ˈrɪd ɪˌkyul /
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noun
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.
to deride; make fun of.
OTHER WORDS FOR ridicule
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Origin of ridicule
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 FROM ridicule
rid·i·cul·er, nounself-rid·i·cule, nounun·rid·i·culed, adjectiveWords nearby ridicule
Ridgewood, Ridgway, ridgy, ridgy-didge, ridic, ridicule, ridiculous, riding, riding boot, riding breeches, riding crop
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
How to use ridicule in a sentence
British Dictionary definitions for ridicule
ridicule
/ (ˈrɪdɪˌkjuːl) /
noun
language or behaviour intended to humiliate or mock; derision
verb
(tr) to make fun of, mock, or deride
Derived forms of ridicule
ridiculer, nounWord Origin for ridicule
C17: from French, from Latin rīdiculus, from rīdēre to laugh
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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