tease
tease [tease teases teased teasing] verb, noun BrE [tiːz] NAmE [tiːz]
verb
1. intransitive, transitive ~ (sb) | ~ (sb) + speech to laugh at sb and make jokes about them, either in a friendly way or in order to annoy or embarrass them
•Don't get upset— I was only teasing.
•I used to get teased about my name.
2. transitive ~ sth to annoy an animal, especially by touching it, pulling its tail, etc.
3. intransitive, transitive ~ (sb) (disapproving)to make sb sexually excited, especially when you do not intend to have sex with them
4. transitive ~ sth (+ adv./prep.) to pull sth gently apart into separate pieces
•to tease wool into strands
5. (NAmE) (BrE back·comb)transitive ~ sth to ↑comb your hair in the opposite direction to the way it grows so that it looks thicker
Verb forms: 
Word Origin:
Old English tǣsan (in sense 4 of the verb), of West Germanic origin; related to Dutch teezen and German dialect zeisen, also to ↑teasel. Senses 1 to 3 are a development of the earlier and more serious ‘irritate by annoying actions’ (early 17th cent.), a figurative use of the word's original sense.
Example Bank:
•His friends used to tease him about his clothes.
•She teased the men with an expression that was both innocent and knowing.
•Don't get upset— I was only teasing.
•They teased her mercilessly with remarks about her weight.
Derived: ↑tease something out
noun usually singular
1. a person who likes to play tricks and jokes on other people, especially by telling them sth that is not true or by not telling them sth that they want to know
2. an act that is intended as a trick or joke
•Ignore everything he said— it was all just a tease.
3. (disapproving)a person who pretends to be attracted to sb, makes them sexually excited and then refuses to have sex with them
Word Origin:
Old English tǣsan (in sense 4 of the verb), of West Germanic origin; related to Dutch teezen and German dialect zeisen, also to ↑teasel. Senses 1 to 3 are a development of the earlier and more serious ‘irritate by annoying actions’ (early 17th cent.), a figurative use of the word's original sense.
See also: ↑backcomb
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