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Synonyms

jeer

1 American  
[jeer] / dʒɪər /

verb (used without object)

  1. to speak or shout derisively; scoff or gibe rudely.

    Don't jeer unless you can do better.
    Synonyms:
    jest, sneer

verb (used with object)

  1. to shout derisively at; taunt.

    Synonyms:
    fleer, flout, ridicule, deride

  2. to treat with scoffs or derision; mock.

    Synonyms:
    fleer, flout, ridicule, deride

  3. to drive away by derisive shouts (followed by out of, off, etc.).

    They jeered the speaker off the stage.

noun

  1. a jeering utterance; derisive or rude gibe.

jeer 2 American  
[jeer] / dʒɪər /

noun

Nautical.

  1. any of various combinations of tackles for raising or lowering heavy yards.

jeer British  
/ dʒɪə /

verb

  1. (often foll by at) to laugh or scoff (at a person or thing); mock

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

noun

  1. a remark or cry of derision; gibe; taunt

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Related Words

See scoff 1.

Other Word Forms

  • jeerer noun
  • jeering adjective
  • jeeringly adverb
  • unjeered adjective
  • unjeering adjective

Etymology

Origin of jeer1

1555–65; origin uncertain; compare Old English cēir clamor, akin to cēgan to call out

Origin of jeer2

First recorded in 1485–95; origin uncertain

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

"This was a jeer from two so-called men to a child," she said.

From BBC

Jones' own tenure ended with a 27-13 loss to South Africa in November 2022, which concluded to a chorus of jeers.

From BBC

That led to a hold-up of several minutes before the game resumed, with Vinicius then being jeered by the home fans.

From Barron's

“What are you looking at?” one of the guys jeered.

From Literature

Both beneficiary and victim of white America’s longstanding insistence on having one media-anointed leader serve as the spokesman for tens of millions of Black citizens, he drew adulation and jeers but consistently held the spotlight.

From Los Angeles Times

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.