as in prank
a playful or mischievous act intended as a joke
friends had left the risqué message on his voice mail as a practical joke
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Recent Examples of practical joke
At a lavish country house party, a practical joke appears to have gone horribly, murderously wrong.
—
Jake Kanter, Deadline, 4 Nov. 2025
With over 300 episodes to shoot, there was time for some practical jokes.
—Jordan Hoffman, Entertainment Weekly, 7 Sep. 2025
This is all some practical joke that’s being played on me.
—Michael Nied, People.com, 26 Aug. 2025
Jordan had thought he’d been set up for a practical joke.
—Mike Dojc, Forbes.com, 22 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for practical joke
Jake Kanter, Deadline, 4 Nov. 2025
With over 300 episodes to shoot, there was time for some practical jokes.
—Jordan Hoffman, Entertainment Weekly, 7 Sep. 2025
This is all some practical joke that’s being played on me.
—Michael Nied, People.com, 26 Aug. 2025
Jordan had thought he’d been set up for a practical joke.
—Mike Dojc, Forbes.com, 22 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for practical joke
Recent Examples of Synonyms for practical joke
Noun
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Broken eggs placed in bed as a prank are an excuse for Heathcliff to let the goo drip suggestively across his calloused hand.—
David Fear,
Rolling Stone,
11 Feb. 2026
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Years of insults and diss tracks and pranks and social media posts have followed, with small islands of peace floating by from time to time.—
Assistant Editor,
Los Angeles Times,
10 Feb. 2026
Noun
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Seven of the 12 finalists fell in their first run in snowy conditions, which made landing tricks more of a challenge.—
Sean Gregory,
Time,
13 Feb. 2026
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Van Der Beek, twisting his remarkable life into a piece of comedy, pulled the same kind of trick.—
Megan Garber,
The Atlantic,
12 Feb. 2026
Noun
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Cannon established Coppermark and almost immediately reached out to Stephanie Lee, a roofing contractor and independent adjuster with extensive experience in hail, wind, and tornado damage.—
J.C. Hallman,
Oklahoman,
10 Feb. 2026
-
Can our experiences as babies still be felt today?—
Daisy Jones,
Vogue,
10 Feb. 2026
Noun
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Then, just two weeks after the Enterprise's close encounter with V'Ger, Disney unleashed an interstellar adventure of its own.—
Richard Edwards,
Space.com,
8 Feb. 2026
-
Prepare for winter adventures with more snow boots from Amazon, below.—
Olivia Young,
Travel + Leisure,
7 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Practical joke.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/practical%20joke. Accessed 15 Feb. 2026.
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