Dictionary

jone en · VERB

Pronunciation

• /d͡ʒoʊn/ (General-American)
• /d͡ʒəʊn/ (Received-Pronunciation)

Etymology

Unknown.

Meanings

1. (followed by on, intransitive, often, qualifier:African-American Vernacular, slang, transitive) To good-naturedly make fun of (someone); to roast.
   • Guys built respectable reps in the community if they could jone hard. They made fun of each other's tacky clothes, berated each other's ugly mamas, talked about each other's shabby houses—highlighted any flaw they could find while competing to put each other down. 1994, Nathan McCall, Makes Me Wanna Holler: A Young Black Man in America, New York, N.Y.: Random House, →ISBN, page 23:
   • note: Judy's clique "joans" him about his father's staying at home, not working, and giving his mother so many children; and about Lillie's and his other sisters' being "whores." 1940, Allison Davis, John Dollard, Children of Bondage: The Personality Development of Negro Youth in the Urban South, Washington, D.C.: American Council on Education, page 226:
   • At school, these girls stood around on the edge of the playground wearing black leather jackets, sneaking cigarettes, and joning on each other. 1996, Connie Briscoe, Big Girls Don't Cry, New York, N.Y.: HarperCollins Publishers, →ISBN, page 17:
   • "He [Caleb Williams] was just talking to me, telling me I always got jokes, I'm always joaning on him. I tell him that's not going to stop," McCain said. 2023 August 25, Michael Lee, quoting Mark McCain, “USC’s Caleb Williams is a star for the NIL era”, in The Washington Post, Washington, D.C.: The Washington Post Company, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 25 Aug 2023:
   • To survive in the hood, you need to know how to jone.

Forms

Relateds

Joanie · roast · dozens · signify · banter · josh