as in banter
good-natured teasing or exchanging of clever remarks
the sophisticated badinage of the characters in plays by Oscar Wilde
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Recent Examples of badinage
Each bus has a pair of hosts, whose badinage is corny but crowd-pleasing.
—
Patricia Marx, New Yorker, 5 May 2025
In The Kitchen, Wesker tracked the decorum from friendly badinage to hostile vernacular that co-workers sustain just to get through the day.
—Armond White, National Review, 30 Oct. 2024
While Hawley hasn’t left behind any of his signature philosophical dialogue or memorable badinage, Season 5 is also the most reliant on the camera to make its points.
—Jim Hemphill, IndieWire, 13 Aug. 2024
The question of who was manipulating whom had been a meta thing in our conversations from the beginning, with jokey badinage about the power of interviewers and the vulnerability of their subjects.
—Laura Kipnis, WIRED, 5 Dec. 2023
The music is in the badinage.
—Peter Rainer, The Christian Science Monitor, 17 Dec. 2020
But also present are Heyer’s wry humor and deftness in witty badinage.
—Katherine A. Powers, Washington Post, 10 Sep. 2022
The film, directed with an alluring blend of badinage and upper-crust sensuality by Emma Holly Jones, is based on a novel by Suzanne Allain (who wrote the screenplay), which was published in 2020 and designed to be a playful riff on Jane Austen.
—Owen Gleiberman, Variety, 1 July 2022
The banality of Ruben Santiago-Hudson’s adapted script suggests satire, yet the film is fairly humorless, despite the musicians’ profane badinage.
—Armond White, National Review, 1 Jan. 2021
Patricia Marx, New Yorker, 5 May 2025
In The Kitchen, Wesker tracked the decorum from friendly badinage to hostile vernacular that co-workers sustain just to get through the day.
—Armond White, National Review, 30 Oct. 2024
While Hawley hasn’t left behind any of his signature philosophical dialogue or memorable badinage, Season 5 is also the most reliant on the camera to make its points.
—Jim Hemphill, IndieWire, 13 Aug. 2024
The question of who was manipulating whom had been a meta thing in our conversations from the beginning, with jokey badinage about the power of interviewers and the vulnerability of their subjects.
—Laura Kipnis, WIRED, 5 Dec. 2023
The music is in the badinage.
—Peter Rainer, The Christian Science Monitor, 17 Dec. 2020
But also present are Heyer’s wry humor and deftness in witty badinage.
—Katherine A. Powers, Washington Post, 10 Sep. 2022
The film, directed with an alluring blend of badinage and upper-crust sensuality by Emma Holly Jones, is based on a novel by Suzanne Allain (who wrote the screenplay), which was published in 2020 and designed to be a playful riff on Jane Austen.
—Owen Gleiberman, Variety, 1 July 2022
The banality of Ruben Santiago-Hudson’s adapted script suggests satire, yet the film is fairly humorless, despite the musicians’ profane badinage.
—Armond White, National Review, 1 Jan. 2021
Recent Examples of Synonyms for badinage
Noun
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Not everyone will love the generous, relaxed amount of hangout time director Shakman’s film spends setting up and illustrating family dynamics and medium-grade banter.—
Michael Phillips,
Chicago Tribune,
23 July 2025
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As the two duos unknowingly orbit the same dangerous secret, Hitchcock unfolds a tight, twisty game of cat-and-mouse full of charming banter and cleverly constructed tension.—
Travis Bean,
Forbes.com,
18 July 2025
Noun
-
With time, their caustic raillery transforms into sincere attachment.—
Charlie Tyson,
The Atlantic,
13 May 2021
-
French’s evocation of place, a rural way of life and overall creepiness are superb, as is the dialogue, a festival of Irish raillery and repartee.—
Washington Post,
Washington Post,
14 Oct. 2020
Noun
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Sketching swastikas and 'edgy' jokes: Idaho shooter not typical loner Who is Wess Roley?—
Thao Nguyen,
USA Today,
24 July 2025
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According to the site, there were allegedly posts that included fat-shaming and rape jokes, among other topics via the Q&A platform Curious Cat.—
Ilana Kaplan,
People.com,
24 July 2025
Noun
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Balki and cousin Larry slipped right into their old repartee from the beloved ABC sitcom.—
Ryan Coleman Published,
EW.com,
14 July 2025
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His brother Richard Rosenthal is Somebody Feed Phil’s executive producer and showrunner; their on-camera repartee is a golden fan-favorite.—
Laura Manske,
Forbes.com,
18 June 2025
Noun
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Watch the scene where the three men stop at a bar in D.C. Meadows laughs for the first time — a shy, honest laugh.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
24 July 2025
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Nixon’s spirit drew appreciative laughs from the crowd throughout the competition.—
Calista Oetama,
Sacbee.com,
23 July 2025
Noun
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None of this will keep Republicans and conservatives from attacking the reconciliation bill with smoke, mirrors and persiflage.—
Michael Hiltzik,
Los Angeles Times,
10 Aug. 2022
-
As Nixon’s political strategist, Kevin Phillips, told the New York Times in 1970: All the talk about Republicans making inroads into the Negro vote is persiflage.—
Jane Coaston,
Vox,
12 Oct. 2018
Noun
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The normal give-and-take of a staff meeting was not his strong suit.—
Michael Barnes,
Austin American Statesman,
2 July 2025
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Indeed, instructors often understand the Socratic principle – that there needs to be an active give-and-take and back-and-forth between a teacher and a student, or between two other partners, that feeds a certain kind of productivity.—
John Werner,
Forbes.com,
1 July 2025
Noun
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Clarkson delivered with her trademark blend of down-to-Earth humor and out-of-this-world vocals.—
Melissa Ruggieri,
USA Today,
12 July 2025
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After all the fussing and fidgeting exerted in trying to nail just the right mix of comic book action, comedy and pathos, the movie emerges as a tone-deaf mishmash of underdeveloped characters, half-baked humor and unhatched plotting drenched in CGI overkill.—
Michael Rechtshaffen,
HollywoodReporter,
12 July 2025
Cite this Entry
“Badinage.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/badinage. Accessed 30 Jul. 2025.
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