scoff

¹ American  

[skawf, skof] / skɔf, skɒf /

verb (used without object)

1. to speak derisively; mock; jeer (often followed byat ).

   If you can't do any better, don't scoff. Their efforts toward a peaceful settlement are not to be scoffed at.

   Synonyms:

   gibe

---

verb (used with object)

1. to mock at; deride.

noun

1. an expression of mockery, derision, doubt, or derisive scorn; jeer.

   Antonyms:

   praise

2. an object of mockery or derision.

scoff ² American  

[skawf, skof] / skɔf, skɒf /

verb (used with or without object)

1. to eat voraciously.

---

noun

1. food; grub.

scoff ¹ British  

/ skɒf /

verb

1. to speak contemptuously (about); express derision (for); mock

2. obsolete (tr) to regard with derision

---

noun

1. an expression of derision

2. an object of derision

scoff ² British  

/ skɒf /

verb

1. to eat (food) fast and greedily; devour

---

noun

1. food or rations

Synonym Usage

Scoff, jeer, sneer imply behaving with scornful disapproval toward someone or about something. To scoff is to express insolent doubt or derision, openly and emphatically: to scoff at a new invention. To jeer suggests expressing disapproval and scorn more loudly, coarsely, and unintelligently than in scoffing: The crowd jeered when the batter struck out. To sneer is to show by facial expression or tone of voice ill-natured contempt or disparagement: He sneered unpleasantly in referring to his opponent's misfortunes.

Other Word Forms

• scoffer
  noun
• scoffing
  adjective
• scoffingly
  adverb

Etymology

Origin of scoff¹

First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English scof; origin uncertain, but compare Old Norse skopa “to scorn”

Origin of scoff²

First recorded in 1855–60; earlier scaff; origin uncertain

Explanation

To laugh at someone with scorn is to scoff at them. People have scoffed at many great inventors, saying their products would flop because the public wouldn't be interested in things like the light bulb, the personal computer, or the pet rock. The verb scoff is often followed by the word at ("scoff at the idea; scoff at the statement; scoff at the notion"). The verb can also mean to treat with contempt or to mock. Naysayers scoff at all kinds of theories, and grouchy old men tend to scoff for the heck of it.

Example Sentences

There’s a tendency for some to scoff at anything that tries to stay relevant for more than a century, but the Dow Jones Industrial Average continues to do just that.

From MarketWatch • May 26, 2026

So when Mary, soaked to the bone and tail between her legs, comes asking for the perfect dress, Sam can only scoff.

From Salon • Apr. 24, 2026

Would they accurately present his honking laugh, his quiet scoff, his John Waters sense of humor?

From Slate • Apr. 23, 2026

But the Seahawks tend to look at those numbers and scoff.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 5, 2026

But my mother did not seem to care; she would always scoff at her opponents and call them fools in letting their husbands enslave them completely.

From "Kaffir Boy: An Autobiography" by Mark Mathabane

Related Words

• belittle
• deride
• jeer
• mock
• reject
• ridicule
• scorn
• sneer