leg-pulling
Friendly joke-making
Leg-pulling is playful teasing or good-natured deception—joking with someone by telling them something untrue and seeing if they believe it: I thought he was serious, but it was just leg-pulling.
The related phrase pull someone's leg means to tease or kid them.
Affectionate verbal teasing
- joshingPlayful mocking
- kiddingTeasing playfully
- banterPlayful, teasing exchange
- chaffingMocking in jest
raillery · badinage · needling · twitting · roasting · jesting · gibing · razzing
Deliberate deception for effect
- gagMouth restraint or jest
- prankPlayful trick on someone
- trickDeliberate deception
- japeMocking trick or quip
lark · shenanigans · antics · mischief · put-on · send-up · spoof · setup
Playful, capricious quality
- jestHumorous remark or act
- frolicLighthearted playful movement
- merrimentLighthearted fun together
- roguishMischievously charming
impish · waggish · mischievous · prankish · sportive · lighthearted · tongue-in-cheek · facetious
ribbing
Affectionate verbal teasing
chaffing · raillery · badinage · needling · twitting · roasting · jesting · gibing · razzing · winding-up
hoax
Deliberate deception for effect
jape · lark · shenanigans · antics · mischief · put-on · send-up · spoof · setup · gotcha
whimsy
Playful, capricious quality
roguish · impish · waggish · mischievous · prankish · sportive · lighthearted · tongue-in-cheek · facetious · drollery
- humorjoke, jokes, comedy, comic, funny
- mischiefmischief, hijinks, antics, pranks, antic
- teasingtease, rib, ribbing, josh, razz
- banterbanter, ribbing, joshing, kidding, quips
- folk humortall tales, trickster tales, trickster stories, humorous anecdotes, fish stories
leg-pullingstraight talk
Honest, direct communication
sincerity · honesty · candor · earnestness · truthfulness
leg-pullinggaslighting
Manipulation causing self-doubt
manipulation · fraud · deceit · duplicity · betrayal
leg-pullingbluntness
Frank, unvarnished manner
directness · plain dealing · straight shooting · calling a spade a spade · telling it like it is
joking, teasing, legs, pulling, pulls, pulled, legged, pranking, puller