Tease
[tiːz] or [tiz]
Definition
(noun.) the act of harassing someone playfully or maliciously (especially by ridicule); provoking someone with persistent annoyances; 'he ignored their teases'; 'his ribbing was gentle but persistent'.
(noun.) someone given to teasing (as by mocking or stirring curiosity).
(verb.) ruffle (one's hair) by combing the ends towards the scalp, for a full effect.
(verb.) harass with persistent criticism or carping; 'The children teased the new teacher'; 'Don't ride me so hard over my failure'; 'His fellow workers razzed him when he wore a jacket and tie'.
(verb.) mock or make fun of playfully; 'the flirting man teased the young woman'.
(verb.) separate the fibers of; 'tease wool'.
(verb.) disentangle and raise the fibers of; 'tease wool'.
(verb.) raise the nap of (fabrics).
(verb.) tear into pieces; 'tease tissue for microscopic examinations'.
(verb.) annoy persistently; 'The children teased the boy because of his stammer'.
(verb.) to arouse hope, desire, or curiosity without satisfying them; 'The advertisement is intended to tease the customers'; 'She has a way of teasing men with her flirtatious behavior'.
Checker: Luther--From WordNet
Definition
(v. t.) To comb or card, as wool or flax.
(v. t.) To stratch, as cloth, for the purpose of raising a nap; teasel.
(v. t.) To tear or separate into minute shreds, as with needles or similar instruments.
(v. t.) To vex with importunity or impertinence; to harass, annoy, disturb, or irritate by petty requests, or by jests and raillery; to plague.
(n.) One who teases or plagues.
Typist: Vivienne
Synonyms and Synonymous
v. a. Worry, vex, plague, annoy, torment, molest, irritate, harass, tantalize, badger, chafe, hector, harry, pester, bother, trouble.
Typist: Tyler
Synonyms and Antonyms
SYN:Vex, harass, annoy, disturb, irritate, plague, torment, tantalize, provoke,worry, badger
ANT:Soothe, gratify, please, delight, fascinate, enrapture
Checker: Lorrie
Definition
v.t. to comb or card as wool: to scratch as cloth: to raise a nap: to vex with importunity jests &c.: to torment irritate.—n. one who teases or torments.—n. Teas′er one who teases out anything: the stoker of a glass-works furnace.—adj. Teas′ing vexatious.—adv. Teas′ingly.
Checked by Dylan
Examples
- Tease calmness of manner and presence of mind! Jane Austen. Pride and Prejudice.
- She would hesitate, she would tease, she would condition, she would require a great deal, but she would finally accept. Jane Austen. Mansfield Park.
- I wanted to tease you a little to make you less sad: I thought anger would be better than grief. Charlotte Bronte. Jane Eyre.
- Beauty is never so beautiful as when, if I tease it, it wreathes back on me with spirit. Charlotte Bronte. Shirley.
- I hope she will not tease my poor pug, said Lady Bertram; I have but just got Julia to leave it alone. Jane Austen. Mansfield Park.
- True, he had bid me make my own experiments--tease and try him. Charlotte Bronte. Villette.
- I give you leave, returned Laurie, who enjoyed having someone to tease, after his long abstinence from his favorite pastime. Louisa May Alcott. Little Women.
- Othello with his occupation gone, she teased. Ernest Hemingway. A Farewell To Arms.
- I went back and teased Dr. John about Madame's devotion to him. Charlotte Bronte. Villette.
- Amy bridled up at this insult, and determined to find out the secret, if she teased for an hour. Louisa May Alcott. Little Women.
- It will be _her_ turn soon to be teased, said Miss Lucas. Jane Austen. Pride and Prejudice.
- One is sometimes teased into going out, till one acquires a sort of habit of society, which it becomes difficult to throw off. Harriette Wilson. The Memoirs of Harriette Wilson.
- I want rest, said I, and I cannot be teased just now. Harriette Wilson. The Memoirs of Harriette Wilson.
- Now, Graham, I will not have that child teased. Charlotte Bronte. Villette.
- Thus did this provoking creature delight in teasing me, and the next half-hour he would seem passionately devoted to me. Harriette Wilson. The Memoirs of Harriette Wilson.
- She seemed to delight in teasing me, which was a change in her I wondered at very much. Charles Dickens. David Copperfield.
- I planned it, and she only gave in after lots of teasing. Louisa May Alcott. Little Women.
- She attracted him more than he liked--and Miss Bingley was uncivil to _her_, and more teasing than usual to himself. Jane Austen. Pride and Prejudice.
- Towards midnight the teasing, monotonous bark of the house-dog disturbed the quietude of their vigil. Charlotte Bronte. Shirley.
- He had spent two years teasing me and I had always liked it. Ernest Hemingway. A Farewell To Arms.
- I begged Mr. Robinson not to lose his time in teasing me when I was out of spirits. Harriette Wilson. The Memoirs of Harriette Wilson.
- The dry, sharp cough, which teases him at most times, seemed to be troubling him more incessantly than ever. Wilkie Collins. The Woman in White.
- Lord Berwick teases Julia and me from morning till night. Harriette Wilson. The Memoirs of Harriette Wilson.
Inputed by Katrina