taunting

American

[tawn-ting, tahn-] / ˈtɔn tɪŋ, ˈtɑn- /

adjective

reproaching or challenging someone in a sarcastic, insulting, or scornful way.

The Times obtained copies of his emails, which our reviewer found unquestionably harassing, with a taunting quality to them.

noun

the act or an instance of reproaching or challenging someone in this way.

The taunting included comments such as "Go home!" and "What are you doing in our country?"

Other Word Forms

tauntingly adverb
untaunting adjective
untauntingly adverb

Etymology

Origin of taunting

First recorded in 1540–50; taunt ¹ ( def. ) + -ing ² ( def. ) for the adjective; taunt ¹ ( def. ) + -ing ¹ ( def. ) for the noun

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.

From my perspective as a political philosopher, these and other similar claims indicate he is speaking falsely as a way of demeaning or taunting his detractors.

From Salon • Apr. 13, 2026

Crew chief Marc Davis said in a pool report that both players were “assessed technical fouls for their continual taunting of one another.”

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 22, 2026

And that unopened brick of air-dry clay that’s taunting you?

From MarketWatch • Feb. 23, 2026

The taunting slogan of a 1990 Sega advertising campaign was “Genesis Does What Nintendon’t.”

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 9, 2026

So Malfoy, jealous and angry, had gone back to taunting Harry about having no proper family.

From "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone" by J.K. Rowling

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023