laugh

laugh
/laf, lahf/, v.i.
1. to express mirth, pleasure, derision, or nervousness with an audible, vocal expulsion of air from the lungs that can range from a loud burst of sound to a series of quiet chuckles and is usually accompanied by characteristic facial and bodily movements.
2. to experience the emotion so expressed: He laughed inwardly at the scene.
3. to produce a sound resembling human laughter: A coyote laughed in the dark.
v.t.
4. to drive, put, bring, etc., by or with laughter (often fol. by out, away, down, etc.): They laughed him out of town. We laughed away our troubles.
5. to utter with laughter: He laughed his consent.
6. laugh at,
a. to make fun of; deride; ridicule: They were laughing at him, not along with him.
b. to be scornful of; reject: They stopped laughing at the unusual theory when it was found to be predictive.
c. to find sympathetic amusement in; regard with humor: We can learn to laugh a little at even our most serious foibles.
7. laugh up one's sleeve. See sleeve (def. 4).
8. laugh off, to dismiss as ridiculous, trivial, or hollow: He had received threats but laughed them off as the work of a crank.
9. laugh out of court, to dismiss or depreciate by means of ridicule; totally scorn: His violent protests were laughed out of court by the others.
10. laugh out of the other side of one's mouth. to undergo a chastening reversal, as of glee or satisfaction that is premature; be ultimately chagrined, punished, etc.; cry: She's proud of her promotion, but she'll laugh out of the other side of her mouth when the work piles up. Also, laugh on the wrong side of one's mouth or face.
n.
11. the act or sound of laughing; laughter.
12. an expression of mirth, derision, etc., by laughing.
13. Informal. something that provokes laughter, amusement, or ridicule: After all the advance publicity, the prizefight turned out to be a laugh.
14. laughs, Informal. fun; amusement.
15. have the last laugh, to prove ultimately successful after a seeming defeat or loss: She smiled slyly, because she knew she would yet have the last laugh on them.
[bef. 900; ME laughen, OE hlaeh(h)an (Anglian); c. D, G lachen, ON hlaeja, Goth hlahjan]
Syn. 1. chortle, cackle, cachinnate, guffaw, roar; giggle, snicker, snigger, titter. 11. LAUGH, CHUCKLE, GRIN, SMILE refer to methods of expressing mirth, appreciation of humor, etc. A LAUGH may be a sudden, voiceless exhalation, but is usually an audible sound, either soft or loud: a hearty laugh. CHUCKLE suggests a barely audible series of sounds expressing private amusement or satisfaction: a delighted chuckle.
A SMILE is a (usually pleasant) lighting up of the face and an upward curving of the corners of the lips (which may or may not be open); it may express amusement or mere recognition, friendliness, etc.: a courteous smile. A GRIN, in which the teeth are usually visible, is like an exaggerated smile, less controlled in expressing the feelings: a friendly grin.

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Universalium. 2010.

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  • laugh — [laf, läf] vi. [ME laughen < OE hleahhan, akin to Ger lachen (OHG hlahhan) < IE base * klēg , to cry out, sound > Gr klangē, L clangor] 1. to make the explosive sounds of the voice, and the characteristic movements of the features and… …   English World dictionary

  • Laugh — Laugh, v. t. 1. To affect or influence by means of laughter or ridicule. [1913 Webster] Will you laugh me asleep, for I am very heavy? Shak. [1913 Webster] I shall laugh myself to death. Shak. [1913 Webster] 2. To express by, or utter with,… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Laugh — (l[aum]f), v. i. [imp. & p. p. {Laughed} (l[aum]ft); p. pr. & vb. n. {Laughing}.] [OE. laughen, laghen, lauhen, AS. hlehhan, hlihhan, hlyhhan, hliehhan; akin to OS. hlahan, D. & G. lachen, OHG. hlahhan, lahhan, lahh[=e]n, Icel. hl[ae]ja,W Dan.… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • laugh — ► VERB 1) make the sounds and movements that express lively amusement and sometimes also derision. 2) (laugh at) make fun of; ridicule. 3) (laugh off) dismiss by (something) treating it light heartedly. 4) (be laughing) informal be in a fortunate …   English terms dictionary

  • laugh — laugh; laugh·able; laugh·able·ness; laugh·ably; laugh·some; laugh·ter·less; laugh·er; laugh·ter; laugh·ing·ly; …   English syllables

  • Laugh — Laugh, n. An expression of mirth peculiar to the human species; the sound heard in laughing; laughter. See {Laugh}, v. i. [1913 Webster] And the loud laugh that spoke the vacant mind. Goldsmith. [1913 Webster] That man is a bad man who has not… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • laugh — [v] expressing amusement, happiness with sound be in stitches*, break up*, burst*, cachinnate, chortle, chuckle, convulsed*, crack up*, crow, die laughing*, fracture*, giggle, grin, guffaw, howl, roar, roll in the aisles*, scream, shriek, snicker …   New thesaurus

  • laugh-in — «LAF IHN, LAHF », noun. Informal. a funny or merry act, entertainment, or the like: »Player conducted a laugh in on the practice ground, subduing inner feelings about the fate of his father (London Times) …   Useful english dictionary

  • laugh|y — «LAF ee, LAHF », adjective. inclined to laugh …   Useful english dictionary

  • laugh at — index disdain, disparage, flout, humiliate, jape, jeer, mock (deride), pillory …   Law dictionary

  • laugh at — (someone) to ridicule someone. A lot of kids laughed at me because of the way I dressed, but it never bothered me …   New idioms dictionary

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