as in kidding
marked by or expressive of mild or good-natured teasing
grinned and gave him a joking nudge with my elbow
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
as in jesting
Related Words
1
as in funning
to make jokes
he was known for his ability to joke about his lack of anything resembling a social life
Synonyms & Similar Words
2
as in teasing
to make fun of in a good-natured way
oh, don't get offended, I was just joking you
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of joking
Literary Hub, 11 June 2026
Sometimes a playful comment, an unexpected reply or a joking callout between brands takes on a life of its own online.
—Expert Panel®, Forbes.com, 20 May 2026
Despite that underlying tension, kids play on the street outside while the large family has a dynamic like any other — noisily squabbling, joking, or in the case of the matriarchal grandmother, Mariam (Hiam Abbass), preparing a meal in a kitchen plagued by constant utility outages.
—David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 15 May 2026
The president has long bristled at the otherwise customary joking at his expense by celebrity comedians.
—Dennis Romero, NBC news, 28 Apr. 2026
Here opposites — classy and brassy — are distractions, with odd-couple joking substituting for something more substantial.
—Frank Rizzo, Variety, 23 Apr. 2026
There was none of the usual laughing and joking.
—Mario Cortegana, New York Times, 20 Mar. 2026
Lindsay says that Jesse was serious about asking, but that the make-out would be a joking make-out.
—Brian Moylan, Vulture, 4 Mar. 2026
The women’s team declined their joking invitation and had to explain comments directed at them.
—Dave Hyde, Sun Sentinel, 28 Feb. 2026
Angelique Brenes, PEOPLE, 11 June 2026
While Diana was clearly joking in her letters with Stamp, the former Princess of Wales was famously open about her mental health—which has had a trickle-down effect of her sons, Prince William and Prince Harry, being open about theirs.
—Rachel Burchfield, InStyle, 9 June 2026
Last year, a seventeen-year-old boy in New Jersey allegedly drove his car into two teen-age girls, killing them both, after joking on a live stream about women getting raped by Tate.
—Heidi Blake, New Yorker, 8 June 2026
Burke wasn’t joking, and quickly whisked Shimada up into a whirlwind of preparation on trying to sell Boise to the visiting entourage that included Japanese FA Director Naoki Tsumura.
—Shaun Goodwin
june 8, Idaho Statesman, 8 June 2026
While Chisholm had a good time joking about using Judge’s bat, the Yankees will need the two-time All-Star to step up with their three-time MVP sidelined.
—Gary Phillips, New York Daily News, 7 June 2026
Netizens were taken aback by the violence on display, joking about an imminent robot uprising.
—Victor Tangermann, Futurism, 4 June 2026
One of the witnesses told police that Shorter had gone into the exchange joking about plans to rob Almendarez-Vigil.
—Maveah Griffith, Charlotte Observer, 4 June 2026
Liu is sworn to secrecy about the latter fantasy epic, joking that a publicist will blow dart us from across the room for saying too much.
—Patrick Ryan, USA Today, 29 May 2026
Noun
Still, Yoon’s joking somehow lightens the mood.
—Literary Hub, 11 June 2026
Sometimes a playful comment, an unexpected reply or a joking callout between brands takes on a life of its own online.
—Expert Panel®, Forbes.com, 20 May 2026
Despite that underlying tension, kids play on the street outside while the large family has a dynamic like any other — noisily squabbling, joking, or in the case of the matriarchal grandmother, Mariam (Hiam Abbass), preparing a meal in a kitchen plagued by constant utility outages.
—David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 15 May 2026
The president has long bristled at the otherwise customary joking at his expense by celebrity comedians.
—Dennis Romero, NBC news, 28 Apr. 2026
Here opposites — classy and brassy — are distractions, with odd-couple joking substituting for something more substantial.
—Frank Rizzo, Variety, 23 Apr. 2026
There was none of the usual laughing and joking.
—Mario Cortegana, New York Times, 20 Mar. 2026
Lindsay says that Jesse was serious about asking, but that the make-out would be a joking make-out.
—Brian Moylan, Vulture, 4 Mar. 2026
The women’s team declined their joking invitation and had to explain comments directed at them.
—Dave Hyde, Sun Sentinel, 28 Feb. 2026
Verb
The post also included a video of Ron sitting at a dinner table joking about salmon.
—Angelique Brenes, PEOPLE, 11 June 2026
While Diana was clearly joking in her letters with Stamp, the former Princess of Wales was famously open about her mental health—which has had a trickle-down effect of her sons, Prince William and Prince Harry, being open about theirs.
—Rachel Burchfield, InStyle, 9 June 2026
Last year, a seventeen-year-old boy in New Jersey allegedly drove his car into two teen-age girls, killing them both, after joking on a live stream about women getting raped by Tate.
—Heidi Blake, New Yorker, 8 June 2026
Burke wasn’t joking, and quickly whisked Shimada up into a whirlwind of preparation on trying to sell Boise to the visiting entourage that included Japanese FA Director Naoki Tsumura.
—Shaun Goodwin
june 8, Idaho Statesman, 8 June 2026
While Chisholm had a good time joking about using Judge’s bat, the Yankees will need the two-time All-Star to step up with their three-time MVP sidelined.
—Gary Phillips, New York Daily News, 7 June 2026
Netizens were taken aback by the violence on display, joking about an imminent robot uprising.
—Victor Tangermann, Futurism, 4 June 2026
One of the witnesses told police that Shorter had gone into the exchange joking about plans to rob Almendarez-Vigil.
—Maveah Griffith, Charlotte Observer, 4 June 2026
Liu is sworn to secrecy about the latter fantasy epic, joking that a publicist will blow dart us from across the room for saying too much.
—Patrick Ryan, USA Today, 29 May 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for joking
Adjective
-
There were the polite claps after good attacks by the Swiss, sarcastic whistles by the Qatari fans after their team again failed to mount a threat.—
Joseph Dycus,
Mercury News,
13 June 2026
-
When the 10th batter (Dalton Rushing) struck out for the first out of the inning, the diminished number of Pirates fans still on hand gave a sarcastic cheer for their team’s stick-to-itiveness.—
Bill Plunkett,
Oc Register,
10 June 2026
Noun
-
Hudson showed some subtle support for the jesting knocks to her boyfriend by reposting a clip of his final joke shared on Fox News' official X page.—
Zoey Lyttle,
PEOPLE,
18 May 2026
-
No matter what happened, Dunham could not seem to help posting through it, her public persona one of infinite jesting confession.—
Madeline Leung Coleman,
Vulture,
14 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
The connection to nature at Vista Celestial is truly profound, with wildlife waiting for you at the door—I'm not kidding, at one point, a capuchin monkey walked onto our patio to say hello.—
Christina Perrier,
InStyle,
8 June 2026
-
And even while kidding, Kupp couldn’t help but say out loud what many Rams followers are thinking.—
Steve Henson,
Los Angeles Times,
4 June 2026
Verb
-
Two children at a Redlands elementary school faced racial harassment, discrimination and teasing for months, resulting in them being diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder, their mother alleged in a lawsuit filed against the school district.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
16 June 2026
-
As Akanji whipped in a teasing delivery from the right, Embolo headed the ball down.—
Dermot Corrigan,
New York Times,
13 June 2026
Adjective
-
To get a sense of his whole deal, look no further than the half-mocking, half-earnest title of his latest album, Country!—
Jonathan Bernstein,
Rolling Stone,
23 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
Not only is that nonsense, but Israel took this into account.—
Isaac Chotiner,
New Yorker,
17 June 2026
-
Get outta here with that nonsense.—
Zach Dean OutKick,
FOXNews.com,
15 June 2026
Adjective
-
By widening the lens, Clark is able to redirect the book’s gaze from the mother toward a quizzical, sometimes critical, but not unaffectionate portrait of two generations of political activism, with the attendant self-involvement and domestic negligence.—
James Wood,
New Yorker,
4 May 2026
-
Carpenter responded with a quizzical frown.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
13 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Joking.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/joking. Accessed 20 Jun. 2026.
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