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mock.

An imitation, usually of lesser quality.

4 characters1 syllables approx.English language

Meaning & usage

noun/mɒk/UK/mɑk/US
  1. An imitation, usually of lesser quality.

  2. Mockery; the act of mocking.

  3. Ellipsis of mock examination.

    abbreviation · alt-of · ellipsis
    He got a B in his History mock, but improved to an A in the exam.
  4. A mockup or prototype; particularly, ellipsis of mock object, as used in unit testing.

Where this word comes from

From Middle English mokken, from Old French mocquer, moquier (“to deride, jeer”), from Middle Dutch mocken (“to mumble”) or Middle Low German mucken (“to grumble, talk with the mouth half-opened”), both from Proto-West Germanic *mokkijan, *mukkijan (“to low, bellow; mumble”), from Proto-Germanic *mukkijaną, *mūhaną (“to low, bellow, shout”), from Proto-Indo-European *mūg-, *mūk- (“to low, mumble”). Cognate with Dutch mokken (“to sulk; pout; mope; grumble”), Old High German firmucken (“to be stupid”), Modern German mucksen (“to utter a word; mumble; grumble”), West Frisian mokke (“to mope; sulk; grumble”), Swedish mucka (“to murmur”), dialectal Dutch mokkel (“kiss”).

verb/mɒk/UK/mɑk/US
  1. To mimic, to simulate.

  2. To create an artistic representation of.

    rare
  3. To make fun of, especially by mimicking; to taunt.

  4. To tantalise, and disappoint the hopes of.

    The wind is mocking my efforts to light a fire!
  5. To create a mockup or prototype of.

    transitive
Where this word comes from

From Middle English mokken, from Old French mocquer, moquier (“to deride, jeer”), from Middle Dutch mocken (“to mumble”) or Middle Low German mucken (“to grumble, talk with the mouth half-opened”), both from Proto-West Germanic *mokkijan, *mukkijan (“to low, bellow; mumble”), from Proto-Germanic *mukkijaną, *mūhaną (“to low, bellow, shout”), from Proto-Indo-European *mūg-, *mūk- (“to low, mumble”). Cognate with Dutch mokken (“to sulk; pout; mope; grumble”), Old High German firmucken (“to be stupid”), Modern German mucksen (“to utter a word; mumble; grumble”), West Frisian mokke (“to mope; sulk; grumble”), Swedish mucka (“to murmur”), dialectal Dutch mokkel (“kiss”).

adj/mɒk/UK/mɑk/US
  1. Imitation, not genuine; fake.

    not-comparable
    mock leather
    mock trial
Where this word comes from

From Middle English mokken, from Old French mocquer, moquier (“to deride, jeer”), from Middle Dutch mocken (“to mumble”) or Middle Low German mucken (“to grumble, talk with the mouth half-opened”), both from Proto-West Germanic *mokkijan, *mukkijan (“to low, bellow; mumble”), from Proto-Germanic *mukkijaną, *mūhaną (“to low, bellow, shout”), from Proto-Indo-European *mūg-, *mūk- (“to low, mumble”). Cognate with Dutch mokken (“to sulk; pout; mope; grumble”), Old High German firmucken (“to be stupid”), Modern German mucksen (“to utter a word; mumble; grumble”), West Frisian mokke (“to mope; sulk; grumble”), Swedish mucka (“to murmur”), dialectal Dutch mokkel (“kiss”).

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Definitions, grammatical labels, IPA, etymology and examples: Wiktionary contributors, extracted by Kaikki / Wiktextract. Adapted under CC BY-SA 4.0. Selected fields and authored examples are shown; third-party quotations and audio are omitted. See contributor history.

Last enriched 2026-09-10. Definitions are in English. Romanizations are shown when supplied by the source; syllable estimates are omitted for unsupported scripts.