Prank
noun / verb Base: prank | Past: pranked | Past Participle: pranked | -ing: pranking | 3rd person: pranks
Definition
1. A trick played on someone that is intended to be funny but not harmful.
2. To play a trick on someone as a joke.
2. To play a trick on someone as a joke.
Context Alive
It was the last day of school and the students were feeling mischievous. They filled their teacher’s desk drawer with hundreds of tiny rubber ducks as a prank before she arrived. When she opened it, she burst out laughing and told them it was the best end-of-year surprise she’d ever had.
Meanings
2 meanings 1 A Trick Intended to Be Funny (Noun) Very Common ▼
This meaning is about a playful trick you do to surprise or fool someone for laughs. Imagine waking up on April 1st and your roommate has wrapped everything on your desk in aluminum foil — your keyboard, your coffee mug, even your pencils. This is a classic prank — a harmless trick designed to make people laugh. You might say “the kids played a prank on their teacher” or “it was just a harmless prank that got out of hand.” Or think about a group of friends who hide someone’s car keys as a prank and then watch them search frantically before revealing the joke. The word suggests mischief with a playful spirit. ✏️ “Play a prank on someone” and “pull a prank” are the two most natural ways to use this — “prank call” is another very common combination, meaning a joke phone call.
Vivid ExampleThe office was quiet on a Monday morning when everyone discovered their chairs had been swapped around. It was a classic prank by the night-shift team who had stayed late on Friday. Nobody was angry — in fact, it was the funniest start to a work week anyone could remember.
2 To Play a Trick on Someone (Verb) Common ▼
This meaning is about the action of tricking or fooling someone as a joke. Imagine watching a YouTube video where a guy pranks his brother by replacing the cream in his Oreos with toothpaste and filming his reaction. This is pranking — actively carrying out a trick on someone for entertainment. You might hear “he pranked his sister by hiding a fake spider in her bag” or “they love pranking each other at work.” Or think about a TV show where celebrities get pranked on hidden camera and their shocked reactions are broadcast live. The word suggests doing something deliberately cheeky and fun. ✏️ This verb form has become much more popular thanks to social media — “prank videos” and “getting pranked” are phrases you’ll hear constantly online.
Vivid ExampleHis best friend was terrified of clowns, so on his birthday they decided to prank him by hiring one to deliver his cake. The look on his face was pure shock. After a few seconds of panic, he started laughing harder than anyone else in the room.
Examples from the Street
“It was just a prank — I didn’t mean to upset anyone.”
It was only a joke or trick — I wasn’t trying to make anybody feel bad
“My brother pranked me by hiding a fake spider in my bed.”
My brother played a trick on me by putting a toy spider where I sleep
“Some pranks go too far — that one could have seriously hurt someone.”
Some tricks and jokes cross the line — that one could have caused a real injury
Common Patterns
play a prank (on someone) → carry out a trick on someone for fun
pull a prank (on someone) → do a trick to fool or surprise someone
it was just/only a prank → used to defend a joke that went wrong or upset someone
a harmless/silly/stupid prank → a trick that was innocent, foolish, or poorly thought out
a cruel/nasty/mean prank → a trick that was unkind and caused real distress
pranks gone wrong → tricks that had unintended negative consequences
a prank call → a phone call made as a joke to trick or annoy someone
a prank video → a recorded trick, usually shared on social media
prank someone → play a trick on someone
get pranked → be the victim of someone’s trick
prank someone into (doing something) → trick someone so they do something they wouldn’t normally do
a prankster → a person who regularly plays tricks on others
a serial prankster → someone known for constantly playing jokes
prank culture → the trend of filming and sharing tricks online
Collocations
3 collocationspull a prank
play a trick on someone
harmless prank
a trick that doesn't cause real harm
prank call
a fake phone call meant to trick someone
Example Sentences
12 examples
1
The students played a prank on their teacher by hiding all the board markers before the lesson started
The pupils tricked their instructor by taking away all the writing pens before the class began.
2
He pulled a prank at the office by wrapping his colleague’s entire desk in aluminium foil
He carried out a joke at work by covering every surface of his workmate’s table and chair in shiny metal paper.
3
Don’t worry — it was just a prank. Nobody actually called the police
Relax — it was only a joke. Nobody really contacted the authorities.
4
She received a prank call at three in the morning and couldn’t get back to sleep
Someone phoned her as a joke in the middle of the night and she wasn’t able to fall asleep again.
5
Those prank videos online get millions of views, but some of them are clearly staged
Those clips of people tricking each other on the internet attract huge audiences, but a lot of them are obviously fake and planned in advance.
6
He’s a real prankster — you never know what he’s going to do next
He’s someone who constantly plays jokes — you can never predict what trick he’ll come up with.
7
The birthday surprise started as a harmless prank but ended with someone in tears
The trick organised for the celebration was meant to be innocent fun but finished with one person crying.
8
I can’t believe you pranked me into thinking I’d been fired — that’s not funny
I’m shocked you tricked me into believing I’d lost my job — that’s not amusing at all.
9
Some pranks go too far and cross the line between funny and hurtful
Certain tricks push past what’s acceptable and move from being amusing to actually causing harm.
10
On April Fools’ Day, the whole family tries to prank each other before midday
On the first of April, every member of the household attempts to trick the others before lunchtime.
Learner Examples
★
On the last day of term, the students pulled a prank on me by rearranging all the classroom furniture to face the back wall
At the end of the school period, the pupils tricked me by moving every desk and chair so they were pointing away from the board.
★
Teachers sometimes need to explain that what feels like a harmless prank to one student can feel like bullying to the person on the receiving end
Educators occasionally have to make clear that something one learner sees as an innocent joke can actually feel like targeted cruelty to the person being tricked.
Phrasal Verbs & Idioms
1 item Idioms & Expressionsplay a prank on — trick someone for fun
The students played a prank on their teacher on April Fools'.
Synonyms & Antonyms
4 items
Synonymsjoke
funny trick
trick
playful deception
gag
informal, practical joke
stunt
daring trick