Taunt
[tɔːnt] or [tɔnt]
Definition
(a.) Very high or tall; as, a ship with taunt masts.
(v. t.) To reproach with severe or insulting words; to revile; to upbraid; to jeer at; to flout.
(n.) Upbraiding language; bitter or sarcastic reproach; insulting invective.
Edited by Babbage
Synonyms and Synonymous
v. a. Mock, flout, chaff, ridicule, revile, reproach, upbraid, censure, deride, jeer, twit, scoff at, sneer at, rail at, make game of, make fun of, treat with scorn, make a butt of, make merry with, POKE FUN AT.
n. Ridicule, derision, scoff, censure, reproach, insult, jeer, gibe, quip, quirk, caustic remark.
Edited by Blair
Synonyms and Antonyms
SYN:Reproach, upbraid, rebuke, censure, jeer, scoff, deride, gibe, sneer, mock,revile, twit
ANT:Compliment, congratulate
Checked by Evita
Definition
v.t. to reproach or upbraid with severe or insulting words: to censure sarcastically.—n. upbraiding sarcastic or insulting words: a bitter reproach.—n. Taunt′er.—adj. Taunt′ing.—adv. Taunt′ingly.
Typed by Jody
Examples
- Your Lordship might have spared that taunt; I do not, dare not love her. Mary Shelley. The Last Man.
- I prefer her cuirassed in pride, armed with a taunt. Charlotte Bronte. Shirley.
- He waited awhile, longing for her to say something, even a taunt, to which he might reply. Elizabeth Cleghorn Gaskell. North and South.
- None shall know where we have been or what we have seen to-night; neither taunt nor misconstruction can consequently molest us. Charlotte Bronte. Shirley.
- Don't taunt me. Thomas Hardy. The Return of the Native.
- Adolph, enraged at this taunt, flew furiously at his adversary, swearing and striking on every side of him. Harriet Beecher Stowe. Uncle Tom's Cabin.
- Every motive, every threat, every angry taunt was urged in vain. Mary Shelley. The Last Man.
- What injustice, Anselmo taunted. Hemingway, Ernest. For Whom The Bell Tolls.
- Alexander, blind with rage and jealousy, taunted and insulted his father. H. G. Wells. The Outline of History_Being a Plain History of Life and Mankind.
- How often has she taunted me with lack of dignified reserve and needful caution! Charlotte Bronte. Villette.
- You have taunted me till my blood is up; you have worried me till I turn again. Charlotte Bronte. Shirley.
- He reviled them as Saxons and snobs at the very top pitch of his high Celtic voice; they taunted him with being the native of a conquered land. Charlotte Bronte. Shirley.
- I rather think some of you have called him a dotard; you have taunted him with his age and the loss of his physical vigour. Charlotte Bronte. Shirley.
- And at the remembrance of her taunting words, his brow grew stern, though his heart beat thick with longing love. Elizabeth Cleghorn Gaskell. North and South.
- In his savage taunting, he flared the candle so close at me that I turned my face aside to save it from the flame. Charles Dickens. Great Expectations.
- It might seem like taunting her with her own poor fortunes. Charles Dickens. Our Mutual Friend.
- On the handsome face of the boy a grim smile played, and ever and anon he threw a taunting challenge to the foes that faced him. Edgar Rice Burroughs. The Gods of Mars.
- I was passing out without looking at her, when she touched me with a taunting hand. Charles Dickens. Great Expectations.
- The great beast stopped and, turning, eyed the taunting figure above her. Edgar Rice Burroughs. Tarzan of the Apes.
- The whole bulk of the fog teemed with such taunts, uttered in tones of universal hoarseness. Charles Dickens. Our Mutual Friend.
- There he perched, hurling taunts and insults at the raging, foaming beast fifty feet below him. Edgar Rice Burroughs. Tarzan of the Apes.
- Then, in a rush, it cruelly taunts him. Charles Dickens. Our Mutual Friend.
- Mr. Brooke again winced inwardly, for Dorothea's engagement had no sooner been decided, than he had thought of Mrs. Cadwallader's prospective taunts. George Eliot. Middlemarch.
- Sikes knew too much, and his ruffian taunts had not galled Fagin the less, because the wounds were hidden. Charles Dickens. Oliver Twist.
- The woman took no notice of these taunts, but walked on, with the same expression of angry scorn, as if she heard nothing. Harriet Beecher Stowe. Uncle Tom's Cabin.
- I cannot help giving myself some little credit for the patience and command of temper with which I endured all these taunts. Harriette Wilson. The Memoirs of Harriette Wilson.
Checked by Enrique