Word
prank
US/ˈpɹæŋk/
UK/pɹˈæŋk/
Definitions
01a practical joke
B1 · Intermediate Countable noun
n. a trick that you play on someone to make people laugh.
n. a practical joke or mischievous act intended to provoke laughter or surprise at the expense of a target.
日本語:いたずら※
“The students played a prank on their teacher by hiding all the whiteboard markers.”
“What started as a harmless office prank quickly escalated when the manager failed to see the humour in having his desk wrapped in foil.”
02to play a joke on someone
B2 · Upper Intermediate Informal
v. to play a trick on someone to make them look foolish.
v. to subject someone to a practical joke or deceptive trick. Transitive — requires a direct object representing the person being tricked.
“He tried to prank his sister by putting a fake spider in her bed.”
“The teenagers spent the evening trying to prank their friends with anonymous phone calls and edited photos.”
03to dress up showily
C2 · Proficiency Archaic · Literary
v. to dress yourself in very bright or fancy clothes to get attention.
v. to dress or adorn oneself in a showy, ostentatious, or vain manner. Often used with 'out' or 'up' in literary contexts.
“The young lord was pranked in his finest silk and gold for the festival.”
“She sat before the mirror, pranking herself in jewels and velvet as if preparing for a royal audience rather than a simple dinner.”
Synonyms
Etymology
Origin uncertain. Perhaps from Middle English pranken (“to adorn, arrange one's attire”), probably from Middle Dutch pronken, proncken (“to flaunt, make a show, arrange one's attire”), related to German prangen (“to make a show, be resplendent”), Dutch prangen (“to squeeze, press”), Danish pragt (“pomp, splendor”), all from Proto-Germanic pranganą, prangijaną, prag- (“to press, squeeze, thring”), from Proto-Indo-European brengʰ- (“to press, squeeze”). Or, perhaps ultimately related to Proto-Germanic *brahtaz, similar to Dutch pracht (“splendor”), Swedish prakt (“glory, pomp”) (loaned from Low German). Cognate with Middle Low German prunken (“to flaunt”), German prunken (“to flaunt”), Danish prunke (“to make a show, prank”). Sense of "mischievous act" from earlier verbal sense of "to be crafty or subtle, set in order, adjust". See also prink, prance, prong.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Word family
NOUN
- Exam level
- CambridgeCambridgeCambridge English QualificationsThe exam suite from Cambridge University Press & Assessment, from A1 Movers up to C2 Proficiency. The benchmark names double as CEFR labels.B1 PreliminaryIELTSIELTSInternational English Language Testing SystemThe 0–9 band test co-owned by the British Council, IDP, and Cambridge. Used for university entry, work, and migration.4.0–5.0TOEFL iBTTOEFL iBTTest of English as a Foreign Language, Internet-Based TestETS's academic English test, the standard route for US university admissions. Scored 0–120, with a 1–6 scale since 2026.1–6 scale: 3.0–3.544–71TOEICTOEICTest of English for International CommunicationETS's workplace English test, big in Japan and Korea. Listening & Reading scores 10–990 and tops out at C1.550–784
- Frequency
- Frequent
- Level
- B1 · Intermediate
- Updated
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QR code
englishreference.com/q/prank
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「日本語」 data: JMdict (EDRDG), CC BY-SA 4.0