prank war
1 synonym for prank war, grouped by meaning and by how common each one is.
Noun — An escalating run of practical jokes between two people or groups, each answering the last one with something bigger.
Synonyms
Rare, literary or technical
Precise, but they will stand out — check the sense before using one.
prank feud
How to use prank war
The word patterns that sound natural to a native speaker.
start a prank war
escalating prank war
an all-out prank war
declare a prank war
Informal.
Etymology
A compound of prank and war, using war in its common figurative sense of a sustained back-and-forth contest.
Full origin of prank war →Frequently asked questions
How do prank wars usually start?
Almost always with one small joke that the target decides to answer rather than laugh off. Because each side has to top the last effort to keep score, the stakes rise quickly, which is why prank wars tend to end in damage or a ban rather than a truce.
What is the difference between a prank war and bullying?
A prank war runs both ways between roughly equal parties who are both willing participants. Once the jokes travel in one direction only, or the target wants them to stop and they do not, it is bullying regardless of what the person doing it calls it.
