taunt
/tɔːnt/ (bre, ipa) · /tɔːnt/ (ame, ipa) · /ˈtȯnt ˈtänt/ (ame, mw) · /tɑːnt/ (ame, ipa)
taunt — verb
- tauntpresent simple I / you / we / they
- tauntshe / she / it
- tauntedpast simple
- taunting-ing form
1. to say cruel or mocking things to a person on purpose, often about a weakness or
to say cruel or mocking things to a person on purpose, often about a weakness or failure, in order to hurt their feelings or provoke an angry reaction.
The older boys taunted Naoko about her thick glasses every morning at the bus stop.
taunt + somebody + about + noun
Ari taunted his younger brother for crying after losing the chess game.
taunt + somebody + for + V-ing
Fans in the stands taunted the goalkeeper after he missed the easy save.
She refused to taunt the children, even when they had behaved very badly all afternoon.
The two cousins taunted each other across the kitchen table until their grandmother told them to stop.
文法句型
taunt + somebody (+ about something)
taunt + somebody + for + V-ing
用法筆記
Object is almost always a person (or a group of people). Often paired with a prepositional phrase naming what the cruel remarks are about: 'taunt + somebody + about / for / over + something'.
常見錯誤
taunt — noun
- tauntsingular
- tauntsplural
1. a cruel or mocking remark, usually said out loud to upset another person or to c
a cruel or mocking remark, usually said out loud to upset another person or to challenge them in an insulting way.
Nkechi tried to ignore the taunts from the back of the classroom, but her hands were shaking.
taunts from + location/group
The runners had to push through a wall of taunts from rival fans near the finish line.
a wall of + taunts (collocation)
Gabriela answered every taunt with a calm smile, which only made the bullies angrier.
His final taunt before leaving the room was that no one would miss him at all.
- compliment
a remark that praises rather than mocks
文法句型
a taunt about something
shout / hurl + taunts + at + somebody
用法筆記
Often plural ('taunts') because cruel remarks tend to come in a series. Frequently appears with verbs of shouting or throwing: 'shout taunts', 'hurl taunts', 'ignore the taunts'.