Meaning & use
being ridiculed
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Meaning
phrase
The experience of being laughed at or made fun of in an unkind way.
Grammar: Used as a noun phrase: it can be the subject or object of a sentence, e.g. 'Being ridiculed hurts.'
Patterns
- being ridiculed by someone
- the fear of being ridiculed
- being ridiculed for something
She stopped sharing her ideas because she was afraid of being ridiculed.
Being ridiculed by his classmates made him quiet and withdrawn.
He handled being ridiculed with surprising calm.
Common combinations
- fear of being ridiculed
- His fear of being ridiculed kept him from speaking up.
- risk being ridiculed
- If you wear that, you risk being ridiculed.
- subject to being ridiculed
- Anyone who is different can be subject to being ridiculed.
Synonyms and how they differ
- being mocked
- Very similar, but 'mocked' often suggests a more direct, face-to-face imitation or scorn, while 'ridiculed' can be more general.
- being teased
- Usually lighter and sometimes playful; 'being ridiculed' is stronger and always negative.
Opposites
Word family
- ridicule verb
- To make fun of someone unkindly.
- ridicule noun
- Unkind laughter or remarks.
- ridiculous adjective
- Very silly or unreasonable.
Commonly confused: being ridiculed or being ridiculous?
being ridiculed vs being ridiculous
'Ridiculous' is an adjective meaning silly; 'being ridiculed' means being laughed at. They sound similar but are different.
Practice
Choose the correct sentence:
Choose one answer.
'Being ridiculed by someone' is the correct passive gerund pattern. 'Ridicule' (option 1) is the base form, not the past participle; 'ridiculing' (option 2) is active; and 'from' (option 3) is the wrong preposition.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “being ridiculed”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.