# ribbing

Pronunciation: say "RIB-ing" /ˈɹɪbɪŋ/

## Noun

1. Light-hearted teasing or mockery directed at someone in a friendly way.
   - Simple: Friendly teasing, where you make jokes about someone in a kind way.
   - _Friendly ribbing followed him around the office after he forgot his own birthday._
   - _The locker-room ribbing never let up, but nobody took it to heart._
2. A rib or set of ribs forming raised ridges across the surface of an object.
   - Simple: A set of raised lines or ridges along the surface of something.
   - _The knitted ribbing around the collar gives the garment its stretch._
   - _Steel ribbing reinforced the inside of the ship's hull._
3. A single occasion of teasing or making fun of someone.
   - Simple: A single time when someone teases another person in a friendly way.
   - _She gave her brother a quick ribbing about his terrible parking._
   - _The rookie endured a few ribbings before the crew accepted him._

## Verb

4. Present participle of rib. — present participle and gerund of rib
   - Simple: Present participle of rib. Use this form for something happening now, often when joking with someone.
   - _The crew spent the whole drive ribbing each other about old mistakes._
   - _He was ribbing his sister over her choice of music._

## Origin

Formed from the verb "rib" (meaning "to tease") plus the suffix "-ing," reflecting the common practice of tickling the ribs to cause laughter.

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/ribbing (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).