Standard Lemma guide

badinage

noun · verb · 3 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • UK: /ˌbæd.ɪˈnɑːʒ/
  • UK: /ˌbæd.ɪˈnɑːdʒ/
  • US: /ˌbɑd.ɪˈnɑʒ/
  • US: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • rhymes with -ɑːʒ
  • rhymes with -ɑːdʒ

1

noun

Meaning 1

Playful raillery; banter.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, uncountable

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

verb

Meaning 2

To engage in badinage or playful banter.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

noun

Meaning 3

frivolous banter

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: banter, raillery, give-and-take, backchat

History

Etymology

Borrowed from French badinage, from the verb badiner (“jest, joke”) from badin (“playful”), from Occitan badar (“gape”). Distantly related to abash.

Across languages

Translations

14 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Bulgarian: закачки (zakački) — playful raillery; banter
  • Chinese Mandarin: 打趣 (dǎqù) — playful raillery; banter
  • Czech: škádlení — playful raillery; banter
  • Northern Kurdish: henek — playful raillery; banter
  • Northern Kurdish: henektinaz — playful raillery; banter
  • Northern Kurdish: henekqerf — playful raillery; banter
  • Russian: подшу́чивание (podšúčivanije) — playful raillery; banter
  • Swedish: raljeri — playful raillery; banter
  • Swedish: munhuggande — playful raillery; banter
  • Bulgarian: закачам се (zakačam se) — engage in badinage
  • French: badiner — engage in badinage
  • Russian: подшу́чивать (podšúčivatʹ) — engage in badinage
  • Russian: подтру́нивать (podtrúnivatʹ) — engage in badinage
  • Swedish: munhuggas — engage in badinage