Taunt

A taunt is a move designed to provoke, annoy, or mock opponents, or to just celebrate a good move or combo. Up until Brawl, there was a limit of one taunt per character. In Brawl, however, each character has at least three different taunts (with the exception of Snake, which all are very similar, except the animation he gets into the box). To use a taunt, in SSB, one must press the L button, or in Melee, up on the Directional-Pad (or "D-pad"). In  Brawl, the direction one pressed on the D-pad (or the buttons on the Wii-Remote) influences which taunt is used. Interestingly, Luigi and Snake are, so far, the only characters whose taunts can inflict damage. Pichu and Captain Falcon had taunts in Melee that had two different animations depending on what direction they were facing. Also, Wario has an extra taunt when he is riding his bike (used by pressing any of the taunt buttons). Some characters, such as Captain Falcon (Down Taunt: Show me your moves!), Kirby (Down Taunt: Haiiii!), Ike (Side Taunt: Prepare Yourself!), Sonic (Side Taunt: You're too slow!), or Falco (Down Taunt: Hands off my bread!) have taunts so annoying, odd, or funny that they have become internet memes.

Each taunt is different between every character. However, there is one thing certain with taunts. Taunts will always have the character doing a motion (such as dancing), and the character may also speak or yell out a battle cry. Some people take advantage of taunts where characters talk within Taunt Matches.

Marth is the only character in non-Japanese versions of the series that still speaks Japanese. However, some "speaking" taunts change between languages. A notable example is Jigglypuff, whose dialogue changes to reflect its name in other languages, such as its Japanese name, "Purin" or Fox in Melee, when he says "kakate koi" ("come on").

A commonly held opinion among players is that Captain Falcon's Kirby's, Sonic's, and Mr. Game & Watch's taunts are very annoying, especially when repeated incessantly.

Custom taunts
A custom taunt is an action that irritates the opponent in a manner similar to a taunt but that is not actually a taunt. For example, each time Kirby or Samus ducks, they make a noise that can annoy the opponent just as easily as one of their normal taunts can. King Dedede crouching position when facing the screen is also considered as a Taunt, as he lies on his side, supporting his head with his hand. Attacks may serve as custom taunts as well. Examples include R.O.B.'s and Mr. Game & Watch's strong up attack (rising arms and a #1 flag, respectively) and Ness's down and up smashes (yo-yo tricks).

Trivia

 * Luigi's and Snake's taunts can damage an opponents. Luigi's one spikes aerial opponents or characters grabbing the ledge with a strengh that no other spike has at 0% (because it has fixed damage). Also, in his Negative Zone he can KO lighter characters with his taunt if they're in it. Snake's taunt doesn't have fixed knockback, and can KO in Sudden Death.
 * Kirby, by using a taunt, can get rid of copy abilities.
 * Any character can remove Snake's cardboard box and throw it in any direction they want.