tease
Americanverb (used with object)
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teases,
present (3rd person singular)
-
teased,
past participle, past
-
teasing
present participle
-
to irritate or provoke with persistent petty distractions, trifling jests, or other annoyances, often in a playful way.
If your little sister is teasing you about your boyfriend and following you around making kissy faces, it’s because she’s jealous and wants your attention.
- Antonyms:
- mollify
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to bully, harass, or torment.
I was teased about my lisp when I was younger.
New animals are kept isolated when they first arrive at the sanctuary to prevent the established pack from teasing or frightening them.
-
to purposely excite or sexually arouse (someone) without subsequent gratification.
Don’t tease me with vacation ideas you know we can’t afford!
She teased her fiancé with a sexy little dance even though she knew they couldn’t go all the way with a house full of guests.
-
to pull apart or separate the adhering fibers of (wool or the like), as in combing or carding; comb or card, as wool; shred.
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to ruffle (the hair) by holding it at the ends and combing toward the scalp so as to give body to a hairdo.
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to raise a nap on (cloth) with teasels; teasel.
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to introduce (a new product) without revealing details about it, conveying only that the product exists and will be available at a future date.
Both developers teased next generation game consoles at the expo, but neither released specs.
verb (used without object)
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teases,
present (3rd person singular)
-
teased,
past participle, past
-
teasing
present participle
noun
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teases
plural
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a person who teases or annoys.
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a person who purposely excites or sexually arouses another, but then withholds gratification: All I did was set some sexual boundaries, but now he's spreading rumors that I'm a tease.
The weatherman needs to stop being such a tease with these predicted snow days.
All I did was set some sexual boundaries, but now he's spreading rumors that I'm a tease.
-
the act of teasing or the state of being teased.
-
Television. teaser.
verb phrase
verb
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to annoy (someone) by deliberately offering something with the intention of delaying or withdrawing the offer
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to arouse sexual desire in (someone) with no intention of satisfying it
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to vex (someone) maliciously or playfully, esp by ridicule
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(tr) to separate the fibres of; comb; card
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(tr) to raise the nap of (a fabric) with a teasel
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Also: backcomb. to comb the under layers of (the hair) towards the roots to give more bulk to a hairstyle
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(tr) to loosen or pull apart (biological tissues, etc) by delicate agitation or prodding with an instrument
noun
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a person or thing that teases
-
the act of teasing
Synonym Usage
See bother.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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teasablenessnoun
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outteaseverb (used with object)
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teasableadjective
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teasingadjective
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unteasedadjective
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teasinglyadverb
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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teasesimple
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teasessimple
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have teasedperfect
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has teasedperfect
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am teasingprogressive
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are teasingprogressive
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is teasingprogressive
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have been teasingperfect progressive
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has been teasingperfect progressive
Past
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teasedsimple
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had teasedperfect
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was teasingprogressive
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were teasingprogressive
-
had been teasingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of tease
First recorded before 1000; Middle English verb tese(n), teise, Old English tǣsan “to pull, tear, comb”; cognate with Middle Low German tesen, Old High German zeisan “to pluck”; the noun is derivative of the verb
Explanation
To tease is to pick on someone or to give false hope. You can tease your little sister by saying "nanny nanny boo boo" or by holding a cookie just out of her reach. Tease, a modern spelling of the Old English taesan “pluck, pull apart" is now associated with the act of harassing. You can still use tease as a verb, though, to describe the act of backcombing your hair to give it volume. But more commonly, tease refers to messing with someone. There’s an old proverb, “Patience when teased is often transformed into rage,” which means if you tease someone a lot, you might get your booty kicked!
Vocabulary lists containing tease
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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.
See Examples For:
Analysts use statistical techniques like linear regression to help tease this out.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 17, 2026
After a roughly 15-minute drive through mild traffic, we made it to the venue just in time to see Epps tease a few audience members during his opening comedy segment.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 5, 2026
And what can you tease now that won’t make sense until we watch?
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 8, 2026
“I tease him about woulda, coulda, shoulda,” Malone said.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 2, 2026
We couldn’t tease her the way we teased Togbe about Auntie Kafui, but I sometimes wondered if he had a bit of a thing for her.
From "Flying Through Water" by Mamle Wolo
Her son, Jack, 34, whom she shares with ex-husband Dennis Quaid, often teases his mom about her home renovation process and has even branded her work “Meg-anized.”
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 23, 2026
Howeth teases, will relate to some of the L.A. attraction’s character groups and themes, as well as its overall story.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 20, 2026
He also teases the introduction of new characters.
From BBC ● Apr. 11, 2026
The only clear morals of “Transcription” have to do with its insistence on mystery, and on art that teases the mind and refreshes the senses.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 31, 2026
“Scared of the dark, Mar?” the dark-eyed Dauntless- born initiate teases.
From "Divergent" by Veronica Roth
Although the transfer has yet to be finalised, the club teased the signing on social media, external with an image showing Vozinha's familiar curly hair.
From BBC ● Jul. 25, 2026
They teased me and called me Dogface, a term of endearment.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 14, 2026
Oliver Tree’s music and memory lived on at the Electric Forest festival over the weekend, where T-Pain and Shaquille O’Neal teased what is likely the late singer’s final project.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 29, 2026
This week, Carlson teased an interview with podcasters Joel Webbon and J.D.
From Salon ● Jun. 26, 2026
He could never leave Ma and her delicious cooking; his sister, Rupa, who coddled and teased him; and Baba, who protected and provided for all of them.
From "Tiger Boy" by Mitali Perkins
The company impressed Wall Street several weeks ago by teasing an improved profitability trajectory.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 11, 2026
The Spidey Tracker info from the “Brand New Day” post-credits scene could be teasing that’s where Spider-Man will eventually land.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 31, 2026
They have hit the ground running, with Kylian Mbappe in impeccable form and Michael Olise at his teasing best.
From BBC ● Jun. 28, 2026
Partridge, 23, smiles at this and tells me there is something almost sibling-like about their dynamic, which may explain why they are so comfortable teasing each other.
From BBC ● Jun. 27, 2026
“We’re just teasing you, nephew. Here, take this. We wear white for celebrations.”
From "Kwame Crashes the Underworld" by Craig Kofi Farmer
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
