Tease

/tiːz/ · verb

Meaning

(transitive) To separate the fibres of (a fibrous material)..

Definitions by Sense

1. (transitive) To separate the fibres of (a fibrous material).
2. (transitive) To comb (originally with teasels) so that the fibres all lie in one direction.
3. (transitive) To backcomb.
4. (transitive) To poke fun at, either cruelly or affectionately in a playful way.
5. (transitive) To provoke or disturb; to annoy.
6. (transitive) To manipulate or influence the behavior of, especially by repeated acts of irritation.
7. (transitive) To entice, tempt.
8. (transitive) To deliberately arouse someone sexually with no intention of satisfying that arousal.

Example Sentences

The difference between teasing and taunting is like the difference between kissing and spitting. The ingredients are the same; it is the emotion that determines whether it is pleasing or repellent.... Proper teasing says, in effect, "I know all your little oddities and faults, but as they are part of what makes you special, I find them charming." Taunting, in contrast, makes only the harsh statement, "I have noticed what is wrong with you."

The beast in the past has done horrible stuff / And his victims were left quite displeased / No one knows what he's so angry about / Maybe once in third grade he was teased

Not by the force of carnal reason, / But indefatigable teasing.

I am myself, the sweetest temper'd man alive, and hate a teasing temper; and so I tell her a hundred Times a day—

He[…]suffered them to tease him into acts directly opposed to his strongest inclinations.

"My tastes," he said, still smiling, "incline me to the garishly sunlit side of this planet." And, to tease her and arouse her to combat: "I prefer a farandole to a nocturne; I'd rather have a painting than an etching; Mr. Whistler bores me with his monochromatic mud; I don't like dull colours, dull sounds, dull intellects;[…]."

A young woman, if she fall into bad hands, may be teazed, and kept at a distance from those she wants to be with; but one cannot comprehend a young man’s being under such restraint, as not to be able to spend a week with his father, if he likes it.

[H]ere comes my Helpmate!—She appears in great good humour——how happy I should be if I could teaze her into loving me tho' but a little——

Synonyms for tease

Antonyms for tease

Related Words

Word Forms

• teases
• teasing
• teased
• teaze
• teize
• tieze

Usage Notes

Choose a synonym only when it preserves the intended meaning, tone, and grammar of the full sentence.

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