"take the mickey" meaning in English

See take the mickey in All languages combined, or Wiktionary

Verb

Audio: En-au-take the mickey.ogg Forms: takes the mickey [present, singular, third-person], taking the mickey [participle, present], took the mickey [past], taken the mickey [participle, past]
Etymology: Possibly from Cockney rhyming slang “to take the Mickey Bliss” (for take the piss). Head templates: {{en-verb|take<,,took,taken> the mickey}} take the mickey (third-person singular simple present takes the mickey, present participle taking the mickey, simple past took the mickey, past participle taken the mickey)
  1. (intransitive, UK, Ireland, Commonwealth, slang, idiomatic) To ridicule or mock. Tags: Commonwealth, Ireland, UK, idiomatic, intransitive, slang Synonyms: take the piss, mock, mickey-take, take the Michael, take the mick, take the micky Translations (to ridicule or mock): sich lustig machen über (German), verarschen (German), ugrat (Hungarian), húz (Hungarian), szórakozik (Hungarian), stríða (Icelandic), grínast (Icelandic), taka vindinn úr (Icelandic), robić sobie jaja [imperfective] (Polish), насмеха́ться (nasmexátʹsja) [neuter] (Russian), издева́ться (izdevátʹsja) [neuter] (Russian), дразни́ть (draznítʹ) [neuter] (Russian), herian (Welsh)

Inflected forms

Alternative forms

{
  "etymology_text": "Possibly from Cockney rhyming slang “to take the Mickey Bliss” (for take the piss).",
  "forms": [
    {
      "form": "takes the mickey",
      "tags": [
        "present",
        "singular",
        "third-person"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "taking the mickey",
      "tags": [
        "participle",
        "present"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "took the mickey",
      "tags": [
        "past"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "taken the mickey",
      "tags": [
        "participle",
        "past"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "take<,,took,taken> the mickey"
      },
      "expansion": "take the mickey (third-person singular simple present takes the mickey, present participle taking the mickey, simple past took the mickey, past participle taken the mickey)",
      "name": "en-verb"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "verb",
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "British English",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Commonwealth English",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "English entries with incorrect language header",
          "parents": [
            "Entries with incorrect language header",
            "Entry maintenance"
          ],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "English light verb constructions",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Entries with translation boxes",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Irish English",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Pages with 1 entry",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Pages with entries",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with German translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Hungarian translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Icelandic translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Polish translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Russian translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Welsh translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        }
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "text": "Are you takin’ the mickey? You’ll get yer ’ead bashed in.",
          "type": "example"
        },
        {
          "ref": "2008 November 15, Kenneth Nguyen, “Who's laughing now?”, in The Age newspaper:",
          "text": "For the last eight years, taking the mickey out of George Bush has been great, victimless fun. Like taking candy from babies or shooting aquatically-challenged fish in size-challenged barrels.",
          "type": "quote"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "To ridicule or mock."
      ],
      "id": "en-take_the_mickey-en-verb-IR3nol~i",
      "links": [
        [
          "ridicule",
          "ridicule"
        ],
        [
          "mock",
          "mock"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(intransitive, UK, Ireland, Commonwealth, slang, idiomatic) To ridicule or mock."
      ],
      "synonyms": [
        {
          "word": "take the piss"
        },
        {
          "word": "mock"
        },
        {
          "word": "mickey-take"
        },
        {
          "word": "take the Michael"
        },
        {
          "word": "take the mick"
        },
        {
          "word": "take the micky"
        }
      ],
      "tags": [
        "Commonwealth",
        "Ireland",
        "UK",
        "idiomatic",
        "intransitive",
        "slang"
      ],
      "translations": [
        {
          "code": "de",
          "lang": "German",
          "sense": "to ridicule or mock",
          "word": "sich lustig machen über"
        },
        {
          "code": "de",
          "lang": "German",
          "sense": "to ridicule or mock",
          "word": "verarschen"
        },
        {
          "code": "hu",
          "lang": "Hungarian",
          "sense": "to ridicule or mock",
          "word": "ugrat"
        },
        {
          "code": "hu",
          "lang": "Hungarian",
          "sense": "to ridicule or mock",
          "word": "húz"
        },
        {
          "code": "hu",
          "lang": "Hungarian",
          "sense": "to ridicule or mock",
          "word": "szórakozik"
        },
        {
          "code": "is",
          "lang": "Icelandic",
          "sense": "to ridicule or mock",
          "word": "stríða"
        },
        {
          "code": "is",
          "lang": "Icelandic",
          "sense": "to ridicule or mock",
          "word": "grínast"
        },
        {
          "code": "is",
          "lang": "Icelandic",
          "sense": "to ridicule or mock",
          "word": "taka vindinn úr"
        },
        {
          "code": "pl",
          "lang": "Polish",
          "sense": "to ridicule or mock",
          "tags": [
            "imperfective"
          ],
          "word": "robić sobie jaja"
        },
        {
          "code": "ru",
          "lang": "Russian",
          "roman": "nasmexátʹsja",
          "sense": "to ridicule or mock",
          "tags": [
            "neuter"
          ],
          "word": "насмеха́ться"
        },
        {
          "code": "ru",
          "lang": "Russian",
          "roman": "izdevátʹsja",
          "sense": "to ridicule or mock",
          "tags": [
            "neuter"
          ],
          "word": "издева́ться"
        },
        {
          "code": "ru",
          "lang": "Russian",
          "roman": "draznítʹ",
          "sense": "to ridicule or mock",
          "tags": [
            "neuter"
          ],
          "word": "дразни́ть"
        },
        {
          "code": "cy",
          "lang": "Welsh",
          "sense": "to ridicule or mock",
          "word": "herian"
        }
      ]
    }
  ],
  "sounds": [
    {
      "audio": "En-au-take the mickey.ogg",
      "mp3_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/f/ff/En-au-take_the_mickey.ogg/En-au-take_the_mickey.ogg.mp3",
      "ogg_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/ff/En-au-take_the_mickey.ogg"
    }
  ],
  "word": "take the mickey"
}
{
  "etymology_text": "Possibly from Cockney rhyming slang “to take the Mickey Bliss” (for take the piss).",
  "forms": [
    {
      "form": "takes the mickey",
      "tags": [
        "present",
        "singular",
        "third-person"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "taking the mickey",
      "tags": [
        "participle",
        "present"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "took the mickey",
      "tags": [
        "past"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "taken the mickey",
      "tags": [
        "participle",
        "past"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "take<,,took,taken> the mickey"
      },
      "expansion": "take the mickey (third-person singular simple present takes the mickey, present participle taking the mickey, simple past took the mickey, past participle taken the mickey)",
      "name": "en-verb"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "verb",
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [
        "British English",
        "Cockney rhyming slang",
        "Commonwealth English",
        "English entries with incorrect language header",
        "English idioms",
        "English intransitive verbs",
        "English lemmas",
        "English light verb constructions",
        "English multiword terms",
        "English slang",
        "English terms with quotations",
        "English terms with usage examples",
        "English verbs",
        "Entries with translation boxes",
        "Irish English",
        "Pages with 1 entry",
        "Pages with entries",
        "Terms with German translations",
        "Terms with Hungarian translations",
        "Terms with Icelandic translations",
        "Terms with Polish translations",
        "Terms with Russian translations",
        "Terms with Welsh translations"
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "text": "Are you takin’ the mickey? You’ll get yer ’ead bashed in.",
          "type": "example"
        },
        {
          "ref": "2008 November 15, Kenneth Nguyen, “Who's laughing now?”, in The Age newspaper:",
          "text": "For the last eight years, taking the mickey out of George Bush has been great, victimless fun. Like taking candy from babies or shooting aquatically-challenged fish in size-challenged barrels.",
          "type": "quote"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "To ridicule or mock."
      ],
      "links": [
        [
          "ridicule",
          "ridicule"
        ],
        [
          "mock",
          "mock"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(intransitive, UK, Ireland, Commonwealth, slang, idiomatic) To ridicule or mock."
      ],
      "synonyms": [
        {
          "word": "take the piss"
        },
        {
          "word": "mock"
        }
      ],
      "tags": [
        "Commonwealth",
        "Ireland",
        "UK",
        "idiomatic",
        "intransitive",
        "slang"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "sounds": [
    {
      "audio": "En-au-take the mickey.ogg",
      "mp3_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/f/ff/En-au-take_the_mickey.ogg/En-au-take_the_mickey.ogg.mp3",
      "ogg_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/ff/En-au-take_the_mickey.ogg"
    }
  ],
  "synonyms": [
    {
      "word": "mickey-take"
    },
    {
      "word": "take the Michael"
    },
    {
      "word": "take the mick"
    },
    {
      "word": "take the micky"
    }
  ],
  "translations": [
    {
      "code": "de",
      "lang": "German",
      "sense": "to ridicule or mock",
      "word": "sich lustig machen über"
    },
    {
      "code": "de",
      "lang": "German",
      "sense": "to ridicule or mock",
      "word": "verarschen"
    },
    {
      "code": "hu",
      "lang": "Hungarian",
      "sense": "to ridicule or mock",
      "word": "ugrat"
    },
    {
      "code": "hu",
      "lang": "Hungarian",
      "sense": "to ridicule or mock",
      "word": "húz"
    },
    {
      "code": "hu",
      "lang": "Hungarian",
      "sense": "to ridicule or mock",
      "word": "szórakozik"
    },
    {
      "code": "is",
      "lang": "Icelandic",
      "sense": "to ridicule or mock",
      "word": "stríða"
    },
    {
      "code": "is",
      "lang": "Icelandic",
      "sense": "to ridicule or mock",
      "word": "grínast"
    },
    {
      "code": "is",
      "lang": "Icelandic",
      "sense": "to ridicule or mock",
      "word": "taka vindinn úr"
    },
    {
      "code": "pl",
      "lang": "Polish",
      "sense": "to ridicule or mock",
      "tags": [
        "imperfective"
      ],
      "word": "robić sobie jaja"
    },
    {
      "code": "ru",
      "lang": "Russian",
      "roman": "nasmexátʹsja",
      "sense": "to ridicule or mock",
      "tags": [
        "neuter"
      ],
      "word": "насмеха́ться"
    },
    {
      "code": "ru",
      "lang": "Russian",
      "roman": "izdevátʹsja",
      "sense": "to ridicule or mock",
      "tags": [
        "neuter"
      ],
      "word": "издева́ться"
    },
    {
      "code": "ru",
      "lang": "Russian",
      "roman": "draznítʹ",
      "sense": "to ridicule or mock",
      "tags": [
        "neuter"
      ],
      "word": "дразни́ть"
    },
    {
      "code": "cy",
      "lang": "Welsh",
      "sense": "to ridicule or mock",
      "word": "herian"
    }
  ],
  "word": "take the mickey"
}

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This page is a part of the kaikki.org machine-readable English dictionary. This dictionary is based on structured data extracted on 2024-12-21 from the enwiktionary dump dated 2024-12-04 using wiktextract (d8cb2f3 and 4e554ae). The data shown on this site has been post-processed and various details (e.g., extra categories) removed, some information disambiguated, and additional data merged from other sources. See the raw data download page for the unprocessed wiktextract data.

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