Standard Lemma guide

persiflage

noun · 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.

  • Received-Pronunciation: /ˈpɜː.sɪ.flɑːʒ/
  • US: /ˈpɝː.sɪ.flɑːʒ/
  • US: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.

1

noun

Meaning 1

Good-natured banter; raillery.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, uncountable

Examples

  • After the third strike he returned to the bench to face the inevitable persiflage from his teammates.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

Frivolous, lighthearted discussion of a topic.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, uncountable

Examples

  • Polite dinner calls for persiflage rather than in-depth possibly offensive discussion.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

noun

Meaning 3

light teasing

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

From French persiflage, from persifler (“to quiz, tease, mock”), from per- + siffler (“to whistle”), from Latin sībilō (“whistle”).

Across languages

Translations

11 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Bulgarian: закачки (zakački) — good-natured banter; raillery
  • French: badinerie — good-natured banter; raillery
  • French: persiflage — good-natured banter; raillery
  • French: plaisanterie — good-natured banter; raillery
  • German: Persiflage — good-natured banter; raillery
  • Hungarian: csipkelődés — good-natured banter; raillery
  • Hungarian: élcelődés — good-natured banter; raillery
  • Hungarian: ugratás — good-natured banter; raillery
  • Hungarian: persziflázs — good-natured banter; raillery
  • Russian: подшу́чивание (podšúčivanije) — good-natured banter; raillery
  • Hungarian: persziflázs — frivolous, lighthearted discussion of a topic