chortled; chortling
ˈchȯrt-liŋ,
ˈchȯr-tᵊl-iŋ
1
: to sing or chant exultantly
He chortled in his joy.—
Lewis Carroll
Lewis Carroll2
: to laugh or chuckle especially when amused or pleased
She chortled with delight.
: to say or sing with a chortling intonation
"… nothing whatever to worry about," he chortled merrily.—Kevin Myers
Kevin Myers
plural chortles
: a laugh or chuckle expressing pleasure or amusement
a chortle of delight
I hear a catbird's bubbling notes, sounding like the bird is half strangling itself to get them out, the rapid-tonguing chortle of a red-bellied woodpecker …—John P. Wiley, Jr.
John P. Wiley, Jr.The grin escalates into a chuckle, the chuckle to a chortle.—Robert Palm
Robert PalmExamples of chortle in a Sentence
Verb
He chortled, “You're going to love this.”
audiences might chortle gently during the movie's amusing bits, but there are few knee-slappers
Noun
the joke provoked a sudden chortle from a bystander
Recent Examples on the Web
Ryan Lattanzio, IndieWire, 5 June 2026
The blackbird really chortles away.
—Literary Hub, 23 Apr. 2026
Michelle Del Rey, USA Today, 3 Feb. 2026
Both turns inside multiple characters display their wide range of comic stylings, offering chortle opportunities throughout the tight 90 minutes of runtime.
—David John Chávez, Mercury News, 7 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for chortle
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Verb
Focus Features acquired it out of last year’s TIFF for $15 million, and now everyone involved is chortling with glee over the $166 million-plus global box office and two weekends straight where the movie’s intake has risen.
—Ryan Lattanzio, IndieWire, 5 June 2026
The blackbird really chortles away.
—Literary Hub, 23 Apr. 2026
Noun
Shadow was there for almost an hour before hearing Jackie’s chortles.
—Michelle Del Rey, USA Today, 3 Feb. 2026
Both turns inside multiple characters display their wide range of comic stylings, offering chortle opportunities throughout the tight 90 minutes of runtime.
—David John Chávez, Mercury News, 7 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for chortle
Cite this Entry
“Chortle.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/chortle. Accessed 18 Jun. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
chortle
verb
chor·tle
ˈchȯrt-əl
chortled; chortling
ˈchȯrt-(ə-)liŋ
: to chuckle especially in satisfaction
chortle
noun
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