jibe
/dʒaɪb/ (bre, ipa) · /dʒaɪb/ (ame, ipa) · /ˈjīb/ (ame, mw)
jibe — noun
- jibesingular
- jibesplural
1. a short comment meant to mock someone or make them look foolish, often delivered
a short comment meant to mock someone or make them look foolish, often delivered in a sharp or teasing tone.
Esme ignored her brother's jibe about her cooking and kept stirring the pot.
noun: a jibe about [topic]
The reporter's jibe at the mayor's broken promises drew laughter from the crowd.
noun: a jibe at [target]
Hassan took the cheap jibe in stride and answered with a calm smile.
Naoko traded jibes with her teammates as they warmed up before the match.
A nasty jibe about her accent made Heloísa walk out of the meeting.
- compliment
the direct opposite — a remark of praise rather than mockery
文法句型
jibe + at + [target]
a jibe about [topic]
用法筆記
Often paired with adjectives that grade the tone — 'cheap', 'nasty', 'snide' (hostile) vs. 'playful', 'good-natured' (between friends).
常見錯誤
jibe — verb
- jibepresent simple I / you / we / they
- jibes3rd person singular
- jibing-ing form
- jibedpast simple
1. to say short, mocking things to or about someone, usually to make them look sill
to say short, mocking things to or about someone, usually to make them look silly or to score a point.
Eli kept jibing at his cousin for missing the open goal during the school match.
verb + at [person]
Reporters jibed about the senator's missed votes throughout the entire press briefing.
verb + about [topic]
Don't jibe at Layla — her presentation went really well considering the short notice.
Vivek's classmates jibed every time he mispronounced a French word in the oral exam.
The commentators jibed gently at the rookie's nervous first pitch of the season.
- praise
the opposite act — saying approving things
文法句型
jibe at [someone]
jibe about [topic]
用法筆記
Almost always intransitive with 'at' (target person) or 'about' (target topic). Distinguish from sense 2 (agreement) and sense 3 (sailing) — same spelling, completely different meanings.
常見錯誤
2. if one piece of information jibes with another, the two fit together or do not c
if one piece of information jibes with another, the two fit together or do not contradict each other; mostly used in American English when checking whether stories or numbers match.
Kevin's story did not jibe with what the security camera recorded that afternoon.
verb + with [account/evidence]
The witness's timeline finally jibed with the phone records the detectives had collected.
positive: 'jibed with'
Olivia's expense report did not jibe with the receipts she handed in last Friday.
What the manager said in the meeting just doesn't jibe with the company's official policy.
Christopher's two accounts of the accident don't quite jibe — one says morning, the other night.
- contradict
to clearly disagree with or undermine another account
- clash
to be in obvious conflict with
文法句型
jibe with [statement/account]
two things jibe
用法筆記
Subject is usually a statement, account, story, number, or piece of evidence — not a person directly. Strongly American in flavour; British speakers more often say 'tally' or 'square'.
常見錯誤
3. while sailing downwind, to swing the sail (or the boat) sharply across so that t
while sailing downwind, to swing the sail (or the boat) sharply across so that the back of the boat moves through the line of the wind.
The boom jibed across the cockpit and nearly hit Adisa as the wind shifted.
intransitive: a sail / boom jibes
Daichi warned the crew before he jibed the mainsail in the strong afternoon breeze.
transitive: jibe + [sail / boat]
An uncontrolled jibe can snap the rigging, so Lotte called the manoeuvre out loudly.
The skipper waited for a steady gust before jibing the boat onto the new course.
Michael ducked low as the sail jibed and the rigging hummed above his head.
- tack
to turn the bow through the wind instead of the stern; the upwind counterpart
文法句型
the sail jibed
jibe the boat / mainsail
用法筆記
Specialist sailing term — only used on or about boats with a fore-and-aft rig. British sailors more often spell this 'gybe'. The manoeuvre is the downwind counterpart of 'tack' (which is upwind).