What does "twit" mean?
A jibe, reproach, or taunt, especially one made in a good-natured or teasing manner.
Twit
/twɪt/ intj, noun, verb, slang
intj, noun, verb, slang ·Very common ·Middle school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A jibe, reproach, or taunt, especially one made in a good-natured or teasing manner.
- Grammar: twit is listed as intj, noun, verb, slang.
- Nearest alternatives: taunt, accuse, allege, anthem.
- Useful contrasts: applaud, commend, compliment.
- Usage evidence: No man for deſpite, / By worde or by write / His felowe to twite, […]
How to use "twit"
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- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "twit" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
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Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "twit" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "twit" as the right word for your sentence.
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Compare nearby meanings
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Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "twit" is acting as intj, noun, verb, slang in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
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3. Confirm with context
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Final meaning check
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When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A jibe, reproach, or taunt, especially one made in a good-natured or teasing manner.
"[T]he ſayd Thomas Hilles & this Reſpondent ſhevvyd the Frear Barons of certayne old Bookes that they had: as of iiij Evangeliſtes, and certayne Epiſtles of Peter & Poule in Engliſhe. VVhich Bookes the ſayd Frear dyd litle regard, and made a tvvyte of it, & ſayd, A poynt for them, for they be not to be regarded tovvard the nevv printed Teſtament in Engliſhe."
- 2 A short, high-pitched call of a small bird, or a similar sound made by something else; a cheep, a chirp, a tweet.
"The minutes seem'd hours—with impatience she heard / The flap of a leaf, and the twit of a bird; […]"
- 3 Chiefly in the form in a twit: clipping of twitter (“a state of excitement or nervousness”). US, informal
- 4 Clipping of twitter (“a knot or other defect in a thread or yarn which hinders spinning or weaving”). Northern-England, Scotland, abbreviation, alt-of, archaic, clipping
"[I]s't a cursed wab o' yarn / That winna work, for knots and twits, / Spun by some thoughtless drabby sluts, / Whase minds on naething else is carried, / But thinking when they will be married; […]"
- 5 aggravation by deriding or mocking or criticizing wordnet
Show 3 more definitions
- 6 An annoying or foolish person. informal
"What do you mean, since when did I become such a radical fairy! […] Since I started knowing twits like you, you twit!"
- 7 someone who is regarded as contemptible wordnet
- 8 A person who chatters or gossips inanely; a chatterer, a gossip or gossiper; also, a person who divulges private information about others or is indiscreet; a tattletale. British, Ireland, archaic, dialectal
"Young Strephon he has Woo'd me long, / And Courted me with Pipe and Song; / But I a silly, silly peevish Twit, / For want of Sense, for want of Wit, / Have phoo'd, and cry'd, / Have pish'd, and fy'd, / And play'd the fool, and lost my Time, / And almost slipp'd, and almost slipp'd, / And almost slipp'd my Maiden Prime."
Verb
- 1 To blame or reproach (someone), especially in a good-natured or teasing manner; also, to ridicule or tease (someone). transitive
"No man for deſpite, / By worde or by write / His felowe to twite, […]"
- 2 harass with persistent criticism or carping wordnet
- 3 To criticize or disapprove of (something), especially in a good-natured or teasing manner. archaic, transitive
"But in the Lovver Houſe ſome there vvere vvhich handled theſe things more tumultuouſly, namely, Bell and Monſon, great Lavvyers, Dutton, Paul VVentvvorth, and others, vvhich tvvitted the Authority of the Queen's Majeſty too much, […]"
- 4 To ignore or kill file (a user on a bulletin board system). transitive
"However, on the Internet BBS's such as Quartz (now dead), Prism, Monsoon, Sunset, ect,^([sic – meaning etc]) someone pulling that kind of crap is likely to get flamed quite fast and twitted before he/she can breathe."
- 5 Followed by it: to speak or write (something) in a taunting or teasing manner. obsolete, transitive
Show 2 more definitions
- 6 To blame or reproach, especially in a good-natured or teasing manner. intransitive, transitive
"Secrecy about B.R. plans for reorganisation and closure of lines and notably some failures to consult with staff representatives concerned with redundancy, are defects with which the railway unions have twitted Dr. Beeching."
- 7 To be indiscreet; to gossip. dialectal, intransitive
Intj
- 1 Used to represent the short, high-pitched call of a small bird, or a similar sound made by something else: cheep, tweet. onomatopoeic
"Midnights bell goes ting, ting, ting, ting, ting, / Then dogs doe hovvle, and not a bird does ſing: / But the Nightingale, and ſhe cries tvvit, tvvit, tvvit, tvvit, / Ovvles then on euerie bovve doe ſit."
Antonyms
Example
"No man for deſpite, / By worde or by write / His felowe to twite, […]"
Common questions
What is a synonym for "twit"?
Common synonyms include: taunt, accuse, allege, anthem, arraign, arsehole.
How do you use "twit" in a sentence?
No man for deſpite, / By worde or by write / His felowe to twite, […]
How do you pronounce "twit"?
Pronounced /twɪt/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
PIE word *h₂éd The verb is an apheretic form of atwite (“(obsolete) to blame, reproach”), from Middle English atwiten (“to attribute (something) to someone; to blame (something) on someone; to accuse or charge (someone) with something; to speak ill of; to taunt”), from Old English ætwītan (“to blame, reproach; to censure, upbraid; to taunt”), from æt- (prefix meaning ‘at, near; toward’) + wītan (“to accuse; to blame, reproach”) (from Proto-Germanic *wītaną (“to punish; to torment; to know; to see”), from Proto-Indo-European *weyd- (“to see”)). The noun is probably derived from the verb, although it is attested in print earlier.
Etymology 2
Imitative of a bird’s call.
Etymology 3
Clipping of twitter.