ENGLISH
REFERENCE

tease

v. · n.
US //ˈtiz// UK //tˈiːz// tease
  1. 1 to joke with someone (v.)
    B1 Intermediate

    to laugh at someone or say unkind things to them, either as a joke or to be mean.

    to provoke or mock someone playfully or unkindly. Transitive, requiring a person as the direct object.

    Example

    The older boys used to tease him about his glasses when he was at school.

    Example

    Although they were close friends, he would frequently tease her about her obsession with vintage vinyl records during their weekly meetups.
  2. 2 to preview or tempt (v.)
    B2 Upper Intermediate Informal

    to show a small part of a new product or story to make people want to see more.

    to entice or tempt by offering a glimpse of something while withholding the full details. Often used in marketing and media contexts.

    Example

    The movie studio started to tease the new sequel with a ten-second video clip.

    Example

    The tech company began to tease their upcoming smartphone release on social media, posting cryptic silhouettes of the device's new camera array.
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  1. 3 to separate or pull apart (v.)
    C1 Advanced Technical

    to pull something apart gently, like tangled hair or wool fibres.

    to separate the fibres of a material or to disentangle something with a fine, repetitive motion.

    Example

    You need to tease the wool apart before you can start spinning it.

    Example

    The archaeologist spent hours using a fine brush to tease the delicate silk fragments away from the compacted earth.
  2. 4 to style hair (v.)
    C1 Advanced American English

    to comb your hair toward your head to make it look thicker.

    to backcomb hair toward the scalp to create volume or a specific texture.

    Example

    She used a lot of hairspray after she teased her hair for the party.

    Example

    The stylist decided to tease the model's hair at the crown to achieve the dramatic height required for the retro-themed photoshoot.
    • backcomb
  3. 5 a person who jokes (n.)
    B2 Upper Intermediate Informal

    a person who enjoys playing jokes on others or making fun of them.

    an individual who habitually mocks or provokes others, often in a playful or flirtatious manner.

    Example

    Don't take him too seriously; he's just a bit of a tease.

    Example

    Known as the office tease, he was always hiding his colleagues' staplers or making lighthearted jokes during the morning briefings.
Origin

From Middle English tesen, from Old English tǣsan (“to tease”), from Proto-West Germanic *taisijan (“to separate, tug, shred”).

Word family

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