in jest

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Even if in jest, prosecutors said, the conversation suggested Sangha “does not appreciate the severity of her offenses, and instead sees her crimes as a potential future revenue stream.”

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 8, 2026

I was a fresh-faced high school senior, living out the prime of my teenage youth in an increasingly progressive world where fundamentalist doomsday prophecies were lobbed around in jest.

From Salon • Dec. 21, 2025

It did, however, tell the BBC that the underwear appeared to have been "moved in jest, without any thought given for the upset this could cause to the owner".

From BBC • Aug. 27, 2025

“We wanted to see what a ‘real’ cult meeting was like,” she said, I think in jest.

From BBC • Sep. 19, 2024

“Thank you, I will,” he answered in jest, and a few months later he did it in earnest.

From "Little Women" by Louisa May Alcott