Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun The act of ridiculing or laughing at someone or something.
  • noun A state of being derided.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • noun The act of deriding; subjection to ridicule or mockery; contempt manifested by laughter; scorn.
  • noun An object of derision or contempt; a laughing-stock.
  • noun Synonyms Ridicule, mockery, gibes, scoffing, taunts, insults.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • noun The act of deriding, or the state of being derided; mockery; scornful or contemptuous treatment which holds one up to ridicule.
  • noun An object of derision or scorn; a laughing-stock.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun Act of treating with disdain.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • noun the act of deriding or treating with contempt
  • noun contemptuous laughter

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[Middle English derisioun, from Anglo-Norman, from Late Latin dērīsiō, dērīsiōn-, from Latin dērīsus, past participle of dērīdēre, to deride; see deride.]

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From Old French derision, from Latin derisionem (action of deridere).

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