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
Sheryl De Vore, Chicago Tribune, 3 Sep. 2025
Against all of this allegedly heady stuff, the score—by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross—intentionally jars us from encroaching drowsiness with chortling woodwinds and shardlike piano chords that are the aural equivalent of jagged Plexiglass off-cuts.
—Stephanie Zacharek, Time, 29 Aug. 2025
David John Chávez, Mercury News, 7 Oct. 2025
The Naked Gun is happy to deliver plenty of chortles, along with some wild swings that are just slapsticky enough to work.
—David Sims, The Atlantic, 1 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for chortle
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Verb
Then, two sandhill cranes began chortling and calling to one another.
—Sheryl De Vore, Chicago Tribune, 3 Sep. 2025
Against all of this allegedly heady stuff, the score—by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross—intentionally jars us from encroaching drowsiness with chortling woodwinds and shardlike piano chords that are the aural equivalent of jagged Plexiglass off-cuts.
—Stephanie Zacharek, Time, 29 Aug. 2025
Noun
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
The Naked Gun is happy to deliver plenty of chortles, along with some wild swings that are just slapsticky enough to work.
—David Sims, The Atlantic, 1 Aug. 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 30 Oct. 2025.
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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