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1 Definition
Playful, teasing conversation or banter, often witty and lighthearted rather than serious.
2 In Use
Over coffee, the old friends fell back into their familiar badinage, trading jokes like they'd never been apart.
3 Word Origin
badin Fr. · joker, playful → badinage 18th c. English
Badinage traces to the French badin, meaning a jester or someone given to playful foolery, itself possibly rooted in a Provencal word for silly or foolish. French speakers turned this playful quality into badinage, a noun for the act of joking or trifling in conversation. English borrowed the word in the eighteenth century largely intact, keeping both its spelling and its light, sociable flavor. It arrived at a moment when English high society prized clever, ornamental conversation, and the French term fit that fashionable taste perfectly.
💡Fun Fact
Badinage became something of a signature trait in eighteenth century English drawing room culture, where wit was currency and the ability to volley clever remarks marked a person as socially sharp. It shows up frequently in the letters and essays of that era, often used to describe the verbal sparring between suitors or rivals. The word has a close cousin in repartee, though badinage leans more toward gentle, affectionate teasing while repartee can carry a sharper edge. Modern usage keeps this sense alive in descriptions of flirtatious small talk, comedic dialogue, and the easy banter between old friends who know exactly how to needle each other without causing any real sting.
