to kid around
19
5.1
- phrasal verb
- /kɪd əˈraʊnd/
- Informal
:
bromear
- During the party, we all started to kid around and share funny stories.
- just kidding around
- Stop kidding around
- Quit kidding around
Amazon and Google and Facebook and Apple are not kidding around.
- Amazon and Google and Facebook and Apple are not kidding around.
- They used to always kid around and call me RCOPO because during boot camp it was like the worst training I've ever been through.
Examples
-
Stop kidding around!
-
I'm just kidding around.
-
Michael likes to kid around.
-
I always kid around with him.
Fiction book (1996) -
- Come on, we're just kidding around.
-
I was just kidding around.
-
I'm not kidding around, OK?
-
Nah, I'm just kidding around.
-
He's always kidding around.
-
These guys are just kidding around and being cute; just look at their cute little berets and all-black attire.
Blog text (28)
Synonyms
∞
3.5
To tease someone in a friendly, playful way
88
2.1
Act in a foolish or playful way without taking things seriously
46
3.6
Act in a silly, playful way instead of working
40
2.4
To say funny things and behave in a playful way to make people laugh
9
4.8
To act silly and playful to make people laugh
7
6.5
Make fun of someone in a friendly, playful way
3
3.5
To act in a careless, playful way instead of doing something important
1
8.1
To play and joke in a silly way and sometimes cause trouble
1
9.9
Act in a foolish, annoying way instead of being serious
To act in a silly, playful way instead of being serious
Antonyms
How Playful
- Informal
7
6.3
- Informal
42
4.6
- Informal
19
5.1
- Informal
40
2.4
476
1.0
Surface Forms
Morphology
kid + around
The verb 'kid' already means to joke or tease, and the particle/adverb 'around' adds a sense of casual, ongoing, or non-serious activity, so the combined meaning 'behave in a playful or joking way' is directly derivable from the constituents. Verb + around constructions that indicate casual/ongoing behaviour are common in English (and paralleled in many languages), so a B1 learner who knows both words would readily infer the MWE's meaning.
Etymology
The phrasal verb kid around comes from the picture of kid meaning a child who plays and jokes. Acting like a child is light and not serious, so to kid around means 'to behave in a playful or joking way'.