laughed; laughing; laughs
1
a
: to show emotion (such as mirth, joy, or scorn) with a chuckle or explosive vocal sound
The audience was laughing hysterically.
b
: to find amusement or pleasure in something
laughed at his own clumsiness
c
: to become amused or derisive
… a very skeptical public laughed at our early efforts …—
Graenum Berger
Graenum Berger2
a
: to produce the sound or appearance of laughter
a laughing brook
b
: to be of a kind that inspires joy
… the blue sky of Autumn laughs above.—Amy Lowell
Amy Lowell1
: to influence or move by laughter
laughed the bad singer off the stage
2
: to utter with a laugh
laughs her consent
Examples of laugh in a Sentence
Verb
What are you laughing about?
The audience was laughing hysterically.
I've never laughed so hard in my life.
I couldn't stop laughing when I saw what he was wearing.
I laughed out loud when I saw him.
He laughed so hard I thought he'd die laughing.
The movie was hilarious. We laughed our heads off.
“I've never seen anything so ridiculous,” he laughed.
Noun
He gave a loud laugh.
a joke that always gets a big laugh
The movie has a lot of laughs.
You're going to be a movie star? That's a laugh.
Recent Examples on the Web
The Star, Kansas City Star, 10 Jan. 2026
This opening scene establishes a human, forgiving tone for a movie in which we are often encouraged to laugh with our heroes but never at them.
—Peter Tonguette, The Washington Examiner, 9 Jan. 2026
Laura Sirikul, Forbes.com, 20 Jan. 2026
Some meme makers are admirers of Kirk who want to valorize him; some are neo-Nazis out to mock Kirk for not being extreme enough (while also drawing attention to their cause); some are liberals trying to troll conservatives; many are surely apolitical types having a nonsensical laugh.
—Spencer Kornhaber, The Atlantic, 20 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for laugh
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Verb
Rose also likes pulling lighthearted pranks to make others laugh.
—The Star, Kansas City Star, 10 Jan. 2026
This opening scene establishes a human, forgiving tone for a movie in which we are often encouraged to laugh with our heroes but never at them.
—Peter Tonguette, The Washington Examiner, 9 Jan. 2026
Noun
No pressure—just beer, laughs, and fitness.
—Laura Sirikul, Forbes.com, 20 Jan. 2026
Some meme makers are admirers of Kirk who want to valorize him; some are neo-Nazis out to mock Kirk for not being extreme enough (while also drawing attention to their cause); some are liberals trying to troll conservatives; many are surely apolitical types having a nonsensical laugh.
—Spencer Kornhaber, The Atlantic, 20 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for laugh
Cite this Entry
“Laugh.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/laugh. Accessed 21 Jan. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
laugh
1 of 2 verb
ˈlaf 
ˈlȧf
1
a
: to show emotion (as mirth, joy, or scorn) with a chuckle or explosive vocal sound
b
: to become amused
2
: to utter with a laugh
she laughed, "What fun!"
laugher
noun
laugh
2 of 2 noun1
: the act or sound of laughing
2
a
: something funny
that game was a real laugh
b
: something deserving scorn
He's an expert? That's a laugh
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