Como se dice "to poke fun at"?

Question

The dictionary says "burlarse de", but it also says burlarse de means "to make fun of". In English to make fun of and to poke fun at are different, so is there a way to say "to poke fun at?"

Answer 1

I agree with your dictionary.

What is the difference between the two English variants?

Hi Julian, "poking fun" at somebody is teasing them, but all in the spirit of good fun. - halofan00, Nov 4, 2013

But making fun of somebody is usually mean spirited. - halofan00, Nov 4, 2013

Answer 2

To make fun of and to poke fun at are very similar. To me there is not much difference. "Burlar(se) de" works for either, but if you are poking fun at someone to annoy them then "molestar(se)" might be a better fit. Or a little cruder might be "chingar". Be very careful using chingar. Know your audience well or you might insult someone.

In Costa Rica Chingar is also to get nude. No entre estoy chingo. - 00551866, Nov 4, 2013

I think in Mexico it's used as the F word, as a stronger alternative to fregar. At least when I was there, every other word was some variation of chingo/chiingar. - halofan00, Nov 4, 2013

and Chingo means "a whole lot of" - I just know if a gringo says "gracias pero no quiero mas, ya comi' un chingo" everybody will get a good laugh. - halofan00, Nov 4, 2013

Answer 3

Another alternative:

tomar el pelo

Annierats, the dictionary said that tomar el pelo is the same as to pull somebody's leg - halofan00, Nov 4, 2013