INDEX:
1. to laugh because something is funny
2. to laugh in a cruel or nasty way
3. to laugh loudly
4. to laugh a lot or for a long time
5. to make someone laugh
6. to stop yourself laughing
RELATED WORDS
see also
↑ FUNNY
↑ JOKE
↑ SMILE
↑ HAPPY
↑ ENJOY
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1. to laugh because something is funny
▷ laugh /lɑːfǁlæf/ [intransitive verb]
to laugh because something is funny or because you are enjoying yourself :
▪ I laughed all the way through the film.
▪ I thought Dad would be angry, but he just laughed.
laugh about
▪ I couldn’t understand what they were all laughing about.
laugh at
▪ No-one laughed at his jokes.
burst out laughing
suddenly laugh loudly
▪ We just looked at each other and burst out laughing.
laugh [countable noun]
give a laugh
▪ She gave a little nervous laugh and glanced towards Robyn.
▷ laughter /ˈlɑːftəʳǁˈlæf-/ [uncountable noun]
the sound you make when you laugh :
▪ We could hear laughter coming from the next room.
roar with laughter
laugh very loudly
▪ The show was a great success, and had the audience roaring with laughter.
burst/gurgle/snort etc of laughter
▪ There was a burst of laughter when he appeared.
▪ Thelma gave a gurgle of laughter.
▷ have a laugh /ˌhæv ə ˈlɑːfǁ-ˈlæf/ [verb phrase] especially British
if people have a laugh about something, they all laugh about it together :
have a laugh about/at
▪ When I realised my mistake, we had a laugh about it.
have a good laugh
▪ It was a bit scary at the time, but afterwards we all had a good laugh.
▷ chuckle /ˈtʃʌk ə l/ [intransitive/transitive verb]
to laugh quietly, especially because you are thinking about something funny :
▪ ‘Do you remember when Michelle fell in the river?’ Morgan chuckled.
chuckle at/about
▪ ‘We used to get up to all kinds of mischief.’ She chuckled at the memory.
chuckle to yourself
▪ Simon sat reading a magazine, chuckling to himself.
chuckle [countable noun]
give a chuckle
▪ He gave a low, knowing chuckle.
▷ giggle /ˈgɪg ə l/ [intransitive verb]
to laugh quietly and repeatedly like a child because of something funny or because you are nervous or embarrassed :
▪ She giggled nervously and went bright pink.
giggle at/over
▪ Linda and Christina were giggling at some private joke.
giggle [countable noun]
▪ There were a few smothered giggles from the girls sitting by the pool.
fit of giggles
▪ She collapsed in a fit of giggles.
▷ titter /ˈtɪtəʳ/ [intransitive verb]
to laugh quietly in a high voice, because you are nervous, embarrassed, or slightly amused :
▪ As the teacher read the poem someone tittered.
titter [countable noun]
▪ ‘That could be dangerous!’ said someone, and a titter ran round the room.
2. to laugh in a cruel or nasty way
▷ laugh at /ˈlɑːf ætǁˈlæf-/ [transitive phrasal verb]
to laugh or make unkind jokes about someone, because you think they are stupid or silly :
▪ The other children laughed at Lisa because her clothes were old-fashioned.
▪ At first I was terrified of being laughed at.
▷ snigger British /snicker American /ˈsnɪgəʳ, ˈsnɪkəʳ/ [intransitive verb]
to laugh quietly at something that is not supposed to be funny, for example when someone is hurt or embarrassed :
▪ Ruth tripped and fell as she walked up the steps. The boys behind her sniggered.
▪ As he walked across the stage, Billy could hear people snickering and whispering.
▷ make fun of /meɪk ˈfʌn ɒv/ [verb phrase]
to make someone or something seem stupid by laughing at them, or by saying things that make other people laugh at them :
▪ Stop making fun of me!
▪ The other girls used to make fun of the way she spoke.
▷ jeer /dʒɪəʳ/ [intransitive/transitive verb]
if a group of people jeer at someone in a public place, they laugh unkindly at that person and shout rude things at them :
▪ The boys jeered as she ran away.
▪ He was booed and jeered by the spectators when he argued with the umpire.
jeer at
▪ After the match the crowd were all jeering at him.
3. to laugh loudly
▷ roar/howl/shriek etc with laughter /ˌrɔːʳ wɪð ˈlɑːftəʳǁ-ˈlæf-/ [verb phrase]
to laugh very loudly because you think something is very funny :
▪ Patsy chased him down the stairs, shrieking with laughter.
roar/howl/shriek etc with laughter at
▪ Dad was roaring with laughter at something on TV and didn’t hear me come in.
▪ They howled with laughter at their own jokes.
▷ laugh out loud /ˌlɑːf aʊt ˈlaʊdǁˌlæf-/ [verb phrase]
to suddenly laugh loudly because you think a situation, someone’s words, something you are reading etc is very funny :
▪ John threw back his head and laughed out loud.
▪ Wodehouse is one of the few writers who can make me laugh out loud.
▷ cackle /ˈkæk ə l/ [intransitive/transitive verb]
to laugh loudly and unpleasantly in a high voice, like someone who is mad :
▪ When I said this, he started cackling like a madman.
▪ ‘Oh we’ve got him now!’ I cackled, dancing round the room.
cackle [countable noun]
▪ There was a cackle from the old lady. ‘I know what you’re after.’
▷ roar/howl/peal etc of laughter /ˌrɔːr əv ˈlɑːftəʳǁ-ˈlæf-/ [noun phrase]
a very loud laugh :
▪ With a roar of laughter, he lifted her off her feet and swung her round.
▪ Everyone burst into peals of laughter.
4. to laugh a lot or for a long time
▷ can’t stop laughing /ˌkɑːnt stɒp ˈlɑːfɪŋǁˌkænt stɑːp ˈlæfɪŋ/ [verb phrase]
to be unable to stop yourself from laughing :
▪ Jonathan kept making funny faces at me and I just couldn’t stop laughing.
▪ It’s so embarrassing when everyone else is being serious and you can’t stop laughing.
▷ laugh helplessly/uncontrollably/hysterically /ˌlɑːf ˈhelpləsli, ʌnkənˈtrəʊləbli, hɪˈsterɪkliǁˌlæf-/ [verb phrase]
to laugh so much that you cannot control yourself and could not stop laughing if you wanted to :
▪ They both leant against the wall, laughing helplessly.
▪ She was laughing hysterically at the thought of Mr Taylor stepping out of his caravan with no clothes on.
▷ have/get the giggles also have/get a fit of the giggles /ˌhæv, ˌget ðə ˈgɪg ə lz, hæv, get ə ˌfɪt əv ðə ˈgɪg ə lz/ [verb phrase not in progressive] British informal
to be unable to stop yourself laughing, especially in a situation when you should not laugh :
▪ It’s very difficult to be angry with somebody when you’ve got the giggles.
▪ I got a dreadful fit of the giggles - I couldn’t help myself!
▷ laugh your head off /ˌlɑːf jɔːʳ ˈhed ɒfǁˌlæf-/ [verb phrase] informal
to laugh a lot and very loudly because of what someone says or does :
▪ When I told him what had happened, he laughed his head off.
▪ I can’t believe we were so stupid. Our competitors must be laughing their heads off.
▷ have hysterics /ˌhæv hɪˈsterɪks/ [verb phrase]
to laugh a lot continuously and uncontrollably because someone says or does something extremely funny or stupid :
▪ Everybody who heard this had hysterics.
▷ fall about /ˌfɔːl əˈbaʊt/ [intransitive phrasal verb] British
to laugh a lot in a very happy and cheerful way, especially because something has happened that you did not expect :
▪ When we heard the news, we just fell about!
fall about laughing
▪ When they saw what their father had done, they both fell about laughing.
▷ I nearly/almost died /aɪ ˌnɪəʳli, ˌɔːlməʊst ˈdaɪd/ informal
if you say I nearly or almost died, you mean that something made you laugh so much that you almost couldn’t stop laughing :
▪ Did you see the look on his face? I nearly died.
nearly/almost die laughing
▪ He said this very solemnly, and they nearly died laughing.
▷ gales/fits of laughter /ˌgeɪlz, ˌfɪts əv ˈlɑːftəʳǁ-ˈlæf-/ [noun phrase] written
a lot of laughter :
▪ Jack put the phone down, and the children collapsed in gales of laughter.
▪ There was a brief stunned silence, and then the entire family went into fits of laughter.
5. to make someone laugh
▷ make somebody laugh /ˌmeɪk somebody ˈlɑːfǁ-ˈlæf/ [verb phrase]
▪ Rachel used to make us all laugh by imitating the teacher.
▪ Thanks for your letter. It really made me laugh.
▷ crack somebody up /ˌkræk somebody ˈʌp/ [transitive phrasal verb] informal
to be very funny and to make people laugh a lot :
▪ Mr Bean really cracks me up. He’s so funny.
▷ raise a laugh /ˌreɪz ə ˈlɑːfǁ-ˈlæf/ [verb phrase]
to succeed in making people laugh, especially when they do not really feel like laughing :
▪ None of my carefully-prepared jokes managed to raise a laugh.
▷ have somebody in hysterics/stitches also have somebody in fits British /ˌhæv somebody ɪn hɪˈsterɪks, ˈstɪtʃə̇z, ˌhæv somebody ɪn ˈfɪts/ [verb phrase]
to make someone laugh uncontrollably :
▪ Roger had us in hysterics with his account of his disastrous trip to Italy.
▪ The cast included Paul Shane, whose quick wit had the audience in stitches.
▷ amuse /əˈmjuːz/ [transitive verb]
if something amuses someone, it makes them laugh or smile because it is fairly funny :
▪ Something in the report had obviously amused him.
it amuses somebody to see/think something
▪ It amuses me to see politicians so eager to please at election time.
6. to stop yourself laughing
▷ keep a straight face /kiːp ə ˌstreɪt ˈfeɪs/ [verb phrase]
if you try to keep a straight face, you try not to laugh or smile, because it would be rude to laugh, or you do not want someone to know you are joking :
▪ When reading some of the competition entries, it was hard to keep a straight face.
▪ ‘I think I’ve lost that camera you lent me,’ I said, trying to keep a straight face.
with a straight face
▪ With a completely straight face, Thomas announced he was joining the Girl Guides.