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ridicule

verb
/ˈɹɪdɪkjuːl/

Etymology

The obsolete adjective is borrowed from French ridicule, from Latin rīdiculus (“laughable, comical, amusing, absurd, ridiculous”), from ridere (“to laugh”). The noun is either from French, noun use of adjective, or from Latin rīdiculum, noun use of neuter of rīdiculus. The verb is from the noun or else from French ridiculer, from ridicule.

  1. borrowed from ridiculer
  2. borrowed from rīdiculum
  3. derived from rīdiculus
  4. borrowed from ridicule

Definitions

  1. To criticize or disapprove of someone or something through scornful jocularity

    To criticize or disapprove of someone or something through scornful jocularity; to make fun of.

    • His older sibling constantly ridiculed him with sarcastic remarks.

  2. Derision

    Derision; mocking or humiliating words or behavior.

    • Safe from the Bar, the Pulpit, and the Throne, / Yet touch'd and sham'd by Ridicule alone.

  3. An object of sport or laughter

    An object of sport or laughter; a laughing stock.

    • [Marlborough] was so miserably ignorant, that his deficiencies made him the ridicule of his contemporaries.
    • To the people […] but a trifle, to the king but a ridicule.
  4. ›+ 3 more definitions

    1. The quality of being ridiculous

      The quality of being ridiculous; ridiculousness.

      • to see the ridicule of this monstrous practice

    2. ridiculous

      • late 17th century, John Aubrey, Brief Lives This action […] became so ridicule.

    3. A small woman's handbag

      A small woman's handbag; a reticule.

      • I hastily drew my empty hand from my Ridicule.
      • “Tills be blowed!” said Mr. Claypole; “there’s more things besides tills to be emptied.” “What do you mean?” asked his companion. “Pockets, women’s ridicules, houses, mailcoaches, banks,” said Mr. Claypole, rising with the porter.

The neighborhood

Derived

ridicule pole, ridiculize

Vish — recursive loop

A definitional loop anchored at ridicule. Each word in the ring is defined by the next; follow the chain far enough and it folds back on itself. Scroll to it and watch.

01ridicule02words03conversation04blades05blade06hockey07hit08target

A definitional loop anchored at ridicule. Each word in the ring appears in the definition of the next; follow the chain far enough and it folds back on itself.

8 hops · closes at ridicule

curated · pre-corpus. live cycle detection across the full graph is the next major milestone.

sense glosses and etymology drawn from English Wiktionary · source · CC-BY-SA