🗓️ Idiom: A Ribbing (n)
💬 Meaning
- Friendly teasing or joking about someone.
- Light humour meant to make someone laugh, not to offend them.
🧠 Example Sentences
- The office gave Tom a ribbing for spilling coffee during the meeting.
- She took the ribbing about her new haircut in good humour.
- You can expect a bit of a ribbing if you forget your presentation again!
🏛️ Origin
The term “ribbing” comes from the idea of playfully poking someone in the ribs to make them laugh. It became a common expression in the early 1900s to describe friendly teasing or joking.
📝 Practice Exercises
1. Fill in the blank:
Everyone gave Sarah ________ after she wore her holiday jumper to the meeting.
Answer
a ribbing
2. Choose the correct answer:
If someone gives you “a ribbing,” they:
a) Praise you sincerely
b) Tease you in a friendly way
c) Argue with you seriously
Answer
b) Tease you in a friendly way
3. Change the sentence using “a ribbing”:
“They teased him for forgetting his lunch again.”
Answer
They gave him a ribbing for forgetting his lunch again.
ℹ️ Other Useful Pages
📚 Learning Resources
👉 Idioms for Humour in the Workplace
👉 Business English Idioms List
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👉 Tutor Toolkit
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Rob is a CELTA qualified English teacher with 15 years of international experience. He has a BSc and PGDip from Loughborough and St Andrews universities in the UK. He has taught in Thailand and Saudi Arabia and now works with professionals worldwide.
