laughed; laughing; laughs
1
a
: to show emotion (such as mirth, joy, or scorn) with a chuckle or explosive vocal sound
The audience was laughing hysterically.
b
: to find amusement or pleasure in something
laughed at his own clumsiness
c
: to become amused or derisive
a very skeptical public laughed at our early efforts—
Graenum Berger
Graenum Berger2
a
: to produce the sound or appearance of laughter
a laughing brook
b
: to be of a kind that inspires joy
the blue sky of Autumn laughs above—Amy Lowell
Amy Lowell1
: to influence or move by laughter
laughed the bad singer off the stage
2
: to utter with a laugh
laughs her consent
Synonyms
Examples of laugh in a Sentence
Verb
What are you laughing about?
The audience was laughing hysterically.
I've never laughed so hard in my life.
I couldn't stop laughing when I saw what he was wearing.
I laughed out loud when I saw him.
He laughed so hard I thought he'd die laughing.
The movie was hilarious. We laughed our heads off.
“I've never seen anything so ridiculous,” he laughed.
Noun
He gave a loud laugh.
a joke that always gets a big laugh
The movie has a lot of laughs.
You're going to be a movie star? That's a laugh.
Recent Examples on the WebAllison Morrow, CNN, 5 Apr. 2024
Sky-high ticket prices, concessions costs that laugh in the face of logic (even the airport isn’t so bold), and the parking fees — my goodness.
—Dieter Kurtenbach, The Mercury News, 5 Apr. 2024
While some people laugh at my system, this old way works for me.
—Bea L. Hines, Miami Herald, 5 Apr. 2024
Hachimura laughed and shook his head before continuing on.
—Dan Woike, Los Angeles Times, 4 Apr. 2024
The show’s ambiguity already drove local viewers insane, laughs Malcolm.
—Marta Balaga, Variety, 25 Mar. 2024
If in doubt, laugh There is one dopamine boost that never fails: laughter.
—Ana Morales, Vogue, 22 Mar. 2024
Damian Fagon, the Chief Equity Officer at OCM, laughed, the mood was ebullient.
—Wesley Parnell, Rolling Stone, 22 Mar. 2024
Something as simple as laughing, yawning, or spending a lot of time in front of screens can cause your eyes to water.
—Amanda Gardner, Health, 21 Mar. 2024
Andy Hoglund, EW.com, 7 Apr. 2024
Wiig evoked laughs as a woman who will not be Jumanji’d, a mom about to break some very bad news to her two kids at a go-kart track and as movie reviewer Aunt Linda in a Weekend Update throwback.
—Omar L. Gallaga, Los Angeles Times, 7 Apr. 2024
Turns out, Phoenix inherited his mom’s unique laugh.
—Sara Vallone, Miami Herald, 3 Apr. 2024
Even though some companies have had April Fools' pranks backfire, marketers continue to issue spoof products in attempts to get some laughs and attention.
—Mike Snider, USA TODAY, 1 Apr. 2024
In another scene, Quinn gives her friend a kiss on the cheek followed by the pair sharing a laugh together.
—Natalia Senanayake, Peoplemag, 29 Mar. 2024
His face framed by an adjoining walrus mustache and bushy goatee, brown hair falling to his shoulders, Barnett won his family’s adoration for his boisterous, infectious laugh, and kid-like sense of fun.
—Shawn Tully, Fortune, 28 Mar. 2024
The movie alternates between prankish laughs and visual poetry.
—Amy Nicholson, Washington Post, 28 Mar. 2024
Iago, based on the parrot voiced by Gilbert Godfrey in the 1992 movie, is now played by the hilarious Aaron Choi -- who never failed to get big laughs from the packed house last night.
—Monica Hooper, arkansasonline.com, 27 Mar. 2024
Verb
Lawmakers at the federal level are talking about 32-hour workweeks and they’re not getting laughed out of the room.
—Allison Morrow, CNN, 5 Apr. 2024
Sky-high ticket prices, concessions costs that laugh in the face of logic (even the airport isn’t so bold), and the parking fees — my goodness.
—Dieter Kurtenbach, The Mercury News, 5 Apr. 2024
While some people laugh at my system, this old way works for me.
—Bea L. Hines, Miami Herald, 5 Apr. 2024
Hachimura laughed and shook his head before continuing on.
—Dan Woike, Los Angeles Times, 4 Apr. 2024
The show’s ambiguity already drove local viewers insane, laughs Malcolm.
—Marta Balaga, Variety, 25 Mar. 2024
If in doubt, laugh There is one dopamine boost that never fails: laughter.
—Ana Morales, Vogue, 22 Mar. 2024
Damian Fagon, the Chief Equity Officer at OCM, laughed, the mood was ebullient.
—Wesley Parnell, Rolling Stone, 22 Mar. 2024
Something as simple as laughing, yawning, or spending a lot of time in front of screens can cause your eyes to water.
—Amanda Gardner, Health, 21 Mar. 2024
Noun
Bowen Yang, Wiig, and Jon Hamm — channeling Don Draper — can barely suppress their laughs here.
—Andy Hoglund, EW.com, 7 Apr. 2024
Wiig evoked laughs as a woman who will not be Jumanji’d, a mom about to break some very bad news to her two kids at a go-kart track and as movie reviewer Aunt Linda in a Weekend Update throwback.
—Omar L. Gallaga, Los Angeles Times, 7 Apr. 2024
Turns out, Phoenix inherited his mom’s unique laugh.
—Sara Vallone, Miami Herald, 3 Apr. 2024
Even though some companies have had April Fools' pranks backfire, marketers continue to issue spoof products in attempts to get some laughs and attention.
—Mike Snider, USA TODAY, 1 Apr. 2024
In another scene, Quinn gives her friend a kiss on the cheek followed by the pair sharing a laugh together.
—Natalia Senanayake, Peoplemag, 29 Mar. 2024
His face framed by an adjoining walrus mustache and bushy goatee, brown hair falling to his shoulders, Barnett won his family’s adoration for his boisterous, infectious laugh, and kid-like sense of fun.
—Shawn Tully, Fortune, 28 Mar. 2024
The movie alternates between prankish laughs and visual poetry.
—Amy Nicholson, Washington Post, 28 Mar. 2024
Iago, based on the parrot voiced by Gilbert Godfrey in the 1992 movie, is now played by the hilarious Aaron Choi -- who never failed to get big laughs from the packed house last night.
—Monica Hooper, arkansasonline.com, 27 Mar. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'laugh.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
Etymology
Verb and Noun
Middle English, from Old English hliehhan; akin to Old High German lachēn to laugh
First Known Use
Verb
before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1a
Noun
1592, in the meaning defined at sense 1
Time Traveler
The first known use of laugh was
before the 12th century
Phrases Containing laugh
Dictionary Entries Near laugh
Cite this Entry
“Laugh.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/laugh. Accessed 16 Apr. 2024.
Copy Citation
Kids Definition
laugh
1 of 2 verb
ˈlaf 
ˈlȧf
1
a
: to show emotion (as mirth, joy, or scorn) with a chuckle or explosive vocal sound
b
: to become amused
2
: to utter with a laugh
she laughed, "What fun!"
laugher
noun
laugh
2 of 2 noun1
: the act or sound of laughing
2
a
: something funny
that game was a real laugh
b
: something deserving scorn
He's an expert? That's a laugh
More from Merriam-Webster on laugh
Nglish: Translation of laugh for Spanish Speakers
Britannica English: Translation of laugh for Arabic Speakers
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