tease
verb (used with object)
to irritate or provoke with persistent petty distractions, trifling jests, or other annoyances, often in a playful way.
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.
Ecclestone, the world's top ranked ODI bowler, was in her element on the turning surface, flighting the ball teasingly, leaving the cover region vacant and luring batters into fatal drives.
From Barron's ● Oct. 11, 2025
Moreover, “Anemone” teasingly delves into a paternal legacy— the price sons pay for inheriting their fathers’ flaws—as it considers the moral thickets of Britain’s late-20th-century history.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 2, 2025
According to another, a boyhood friend teasingly called Jones Parnellie, after the girl’s name, Nellie.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 5, 2024
One of the tricky parts of a ghost story like “True Detective: Night Country” is the banal, inevitable business of having to explain events that were once teasingly inexplicable.
From New York Times ● Feb. 18, 2024
Once my father referred to me teasingly as “Old Scarface” and looked perfectly bewildered when I burst into tears.
From "Jacob Have I Loved" by Katherine Paterson
