TANTALISE

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does tantalise mean? 

• TANTALISE (verb)
  The verb TANTALISE has 1 sense:

1. harass with persistent criticism or carping

  Familiarity information: TANTALISE used as a verb is very rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• TANTALISE (verb)

Present simple: I / you / we / they tantalise    ... he / she / it tantalises   
Past simple: tantalised   
Past participle: tantalised   
-ing form: tantalising   

Sense 1

Meaning:

Harass with persistent criticism or carping

Classified under:

Verbs of telling, asking, ordering, singing

Synonyms:

bait; cod; rag; rally; razz; ride; tantalise; tantalize; taunt; tease; twit

Context example:

His fellow workers razzed him when he wore a jacket and tie

Hypernyms (to "tantalise" is one way to...):

bemock; mock (treat with contempt)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "tantalise"):

barrack; flout; gibe; jeer; scoff (laugh at with contempt and derision)

banter; chaff; jolly; josh; kid (be silly or tease one another)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s somebody

Derivation:

tantaliser (someone who tantalizes; a tormentor who offers something desirable but keeps it just out of reach)

Tantalus ((Greek mythology) a wicked king and son of Zeus; condemned in Hades to stand in water that receded when he tried to drink and beneath fruit that receded when he reached for it)

 Context examples 

Other phenomena, however, could also account for these tantalising features.

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