deride
UK /dɪˈɹaɪd/ · US /dəˈɹaɪd/ verb
Forms derides deriding derided deridest deridedst derideth
- verb (transitive) To laugh at or mock (someone or something) harshly; to ridicule, to scorn.
- verb (intransitive, obsolete) To laugh in a harshly mocking manner.
Synonyms
badger bam barrack brock bullyrag chiack fleer fligger flite geck heckle hound jeer nip outlaugh poke borack ridicule scoff sneer taunt
Etymology
Learned borrowing from Latin dērīdēre, the present active infinitive of dērīdeō (“to laugh at, make fun of, mock, deride”), from dē- (prefix denoting putting down or subjecting to indignity) + rīdeō (“to laugh; to laugh at, mock, ridicule”) (further etymology uncertain, possibly from Proto-Indo-European *wert- (“to rotate; to turn”) (referring to turning the mouth to smile) or *wreyd- (“to carve; to scratch”)).
* Old French dérider (rare), derire
Webster’s 1913
- verb To laugh at with contempt; to laugh to scorn; to turn to ridicule or make sport of; to mock; to scoff at. And the Pharisees, also, . . . derided him. Luke xvi. 14.
Etymology [L. deridere, derisum; de- + rid to laugh. See Ridicule.]
Sources: Wiktionary · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “deride”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details