chuckled; chuckling; chuckles
1
: to laugh inwardly or quietly
He chuckled as he read the comic strip.
2
: to make a continuous gentle sound resembling suppressed (see suppress sense 5a) mirth
the clear bright water chuckled over gravel—
B. A. Williams
B. A. Williams
: to utter with a chuckle
Templeton grinned. "I'll tend to this," he chuckled. He took Wilbur's tail in his mouth and bit it … . The pain revived Wilbur.—E. B. White
E. B. WhiteSynonyms
Examples of chuckle in a Sentence
She chuckled at the memory of what he had said.
everyone dutifully chuckled at the professor's intended jokes
Recent Examples on the Web
At least one network executive — who would rather chuckle anonymously — is amused by it all.
—Michael Schneider, Variety, 14 May 2024
Many people chuckled or laughed in the courtroom, including several jurors.
– Aysha Bagchi
Chart shows invoices, vouchers, and checks for each count in Trump indictment
Jarmel-Schneider testified about a chart that has been shown to show jurors.
—Aysha Bagchi, USA TODAY, 10 May 2024
The other guests chuckled, with one exception: the Canadian writer Denise Bombardier.
—Adam Nossiter, New York Times, 9 May 2024
Trump lawyer Todd Blanche chuckled at the juror's first answers.
—Ben Adler, USA TODAY, 18 Apr. 2024
The 23-year-old Forbes clapped her hands and chuckled.
—Thuc Nhi Nguyen, Los Angeles Times, 29 Mar. 2024
Forbes’ Rashi Shrivastava writes that Hume’s tech also occasionally pauses when speaking, and will even chuckle—slightly disconcerting to hear coming from a computer.
—Sarah Whitmire, Forbes, 28 Mar. 2024
Moderator Whoopi Goldberg chuckled at Behar's quip, before lowering her head to rest face-down on the table as the panelists continued talking.
—Joey Nolfi, EW.com, 21 Mar. 2024
One moment this week, Ohtani and Mizuhara were chuckling with each other during a game.
—Kevin Rector, Los Angeles Times, 21 Mar. 2024
Michael Schneider, Variety, 14 May 2024
Many people chuckled or laughed in the courtroom, including several jurors.
– Aysha Bagchi
Chart shows invoices, vouchers, and checks for each count in Trump indictment
Jarmel-Schneider testified about a chart that has been shown to show jurors.
—Aysha Bagchi, USA TODAY, 10 May 2024
The other guests chuckled, with one exception: the Canadian writer Denise Bombardier.
—Adam Nossiter, New York Times, 9 May 2024
Trump lawyer Todd Blanche chuckled at the juror's first answers.
—Ben Adler, USA TODAY, 18 Apr. 2024
The 23-year-old Forbes clapped her hands and chuckled.
—Thuc Nhi Nguyen, Los Angeles Times, 29 Mar. 2024
Forbes’ Rashi Shrivastava writes that Hume’s tech also occasionally pauses when speaking, and will even chuckle—slightly disconcerting to hear coming from a computer.
—Sarah Whitmire, Forbes, 28 Mar. 2024
Moderator Whoopi Goldberg chuckled at Behar's quip, before lowering her head to rest face-down on the table as the panelists continued talking.
—Joey Nolfi, EW.com, 21 Mar. 2024
One moment this week, Ohtani and Mizuhara were chuckling with each other during a game.
—Kevin Rector, Los Angeles Times, 21 Mar. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'chuckle.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near chuckle
Cite this Entry
“Chuckle.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/chuckle. Accessed 18 May. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
chuckle
verb
chuck·le
ˈchək-əl 
chuckled; chuckling
ˈchək-(ə-)liŋ
: to laugh in a quiet way
chuckle
noun
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