Joking around x Joking: Qual a diferença

1) I was joking around
2) I was joking

Qual a diferença?
Soa mais natural a primeira?

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No meu entendimento e experiência, pode haver uma diferença

I was joking = A pessoa fala isso quando quer dizer que estava brincando sobre algo que falou em específico , que não falou serio.

Did you really mean it when you called me ugly?
No, I was just joking.

I was joking around = Nao exatamente sobre algo que a pessoa falou em específico, pode ter mais a ver com ações e estar sendo "brincalhão".

The guys and I were all joking around until David's uptight ass showed up.

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As duas têm o mesmo sentido.
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"Joking" could mean that I was caught "red-handed" in a fib, or untruth about something just said that was exposed, etc. One could say that "I am joking", meaning "I weren't serious about what I said" (as if I had told a joke). That would serve to actions, etc. And it would be specific in kind - to the "joke" at hand. Someone that is telling a joke (right now) is joking.

Now, if you are telling a lot of jokes, along with trying to be funny, witty, is joking around.

Sometimes the difference between them would be that "joking" would be about something spoken (something you say) whereas with "joking around" might include actions (acting funny/lightheartedly, etc).

In Portuguese we could think of joking (eu estava) "zoando/sacaneando (no bom sentido...brincando) [especificamente ou referindo-se à um momento específico em que eu disse algo - que é o algo a que me refiro ao dizer que "tava (te) zoando, ou zoando outra pessoa] while with "joking around" (eu estava) "zoando/brincando" [num sentido geral].

Not a rule set in stone, since you could be caught in a fib and say "I was just joking around" meaning "I weren´t serious" (about what I said) at that moment or "I was just being lighthearted/playful" in general.