— ridiculer , n.
/rid"i kyoohl'/ , n. , v. , ridiculed, ridiculing .
n.
1. speech or action intended to cause contemptuous laughter at a person or thing; derision.
v.t.
2. to deride; make fun of.
[ 1665-75; ridiculum a joke, equiv. to rid ( ere ) to laugh + -i- -I- + -culum -CULE 2 ]
Syn. 1. mockery, raillery, sarcasm, satire, irony. 2. banter, chaff, rally, twit, burlesque, satirize, lampoon. RIDICULE, DERIDE, MOCK, TAUNT imply making game of a person, usually in an unkind, jeering way. To RIDICULE is to make fun of, either sportively and good-humoredly, or unkindly with the intention of humiliating: to ridicule a pretentious person. To DERIDE is to assail one with scornful laughter: to deride a statement of belief.
To MOCK is sometimes playfully, sometimes insultingly, to imitate and caricature the appearance or actions of another: She mocked the seriousness of his expression. To TAUNT is to call attention to something annoying or humiliating, usually maliciously and exultingly and often in the presence of others: to taunt a candidate about his defeat in an election.
Ant . praise.