titter

1 of 2

verb

tit·​ter ˈti-tər How to pronounce titter (audio)
tittered; tittering; titters

intransitive verb

: to laugh in a nervous, affected, or partly suppressed manner : giggle, snicker

titter

2 of 2

noun

plural titters
: a quiet or nervous laugh : an act or instance of tittering
There were a few titters from the students.
Most importantly, I can see the candidates' body language when they're off-camera and hear the murmurs and titters in the crowd.Dana Milbank

Examples of titter in a Sentence

Verb Some people in the audience tittered nervously during an awkward pause in the speech. even as students in the sex ed class continued to titter, the lecturer plowed ahead Noun a titter swept through the crowd at his verbal slip
Recent Examples on the Web
Verb
As a beaming Turner greeted a cast of hopefuls in the premiere episode, the senior center crowd tittered at attention-getting strategies like riding up to the Bachelor Mansion on a motorcycle, groaning at the franchise’s wink-wink, nudge-nudge innuendo. Julia Jacobs, New York Times, 5 Oct. 2023 The crowd began to titter as Newman shaded his eyes, pretending to look into the stands for a challenger. Michael Hiltzik, Los Angeles Times, 22 June 2023 Little Madilyn, tittering, looks up at me and stuffs both hands into her mouth to stop from whooping. E. Jean Carroll, Outside Online, 15 Nov. 2018 As a consumer product for those who titter, this production appears to check all the boxes. Ed Stockly, Los Angeles Times, 21 Oct. 2021 All hail sound designer Ben Burtt: The tittering probe droid, the braying AT-AT laserspray. Darren Franich, EW.com, 30 Oct. 2019 That didn’t seem to faze the opening-night audience, which tittered at each scandalous line. Los Angeles Times, 27 Sep. 2019 The pass arrived just in time, and the crowd tittered in excitement. Jonas Shaffer, baltimoresun.com, 3 Aug. 2019 Six floors below Picasso’s most famous painting the audience tittered. Chloe Malle, Vogue, 20 Nov. 2018
Noun
Trump rallies have over-the-top party energy; Trump nicknames draw titters from the crowd. Kate Cohen, Washington Post, 25 July 2024 Santiago, dressed as the Grim Reaper, toys with her for a while, giving her a bit of hope before killing her in front of an audience that nervously titters before bursting into applause. Rebecca Alter, Vulture, 19 May 2024 His every appearance is met with titters of laughter, all amply deserved. Maureen Lee Lenker, EW.com, 30 June 2023 A bit of public masturbation by a gravesite, rendered in dim blue light as Turturro faces away from the audience, with a splatter of ejaculate rendered through projections (by Alex Basco Koch), gets a few predictable titters from the audience but never feels as edgy as it’s presumably meant to. Vulture, 2 Nov. 2023 There are some titters from his family, more deflated than amused. Michael Luo, The New Yorker, 23 Oct. 2023 There’s much comedy in the asking (menopausal feminists delivering deliberately unfunny monologues at open-mic night at the local comedy club prompts an uneasy titter in both the audience and the reader), but the novel makes clear that the answers aren’t straightforward. Claire Messud, Harper's Magazine, 22 June 2021 There was delighted laughter of those surprised by humorous turns that rarely get a titter anymore. Los Angeles Times, 8 Feb. 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'titter.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Verb

imitative

First Known Use

Verb

circa 1625, in the meaning defined above

Noun

1711, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of titter was circa 1625

Dictionary Entries Near titter

Cite this Entry

“Titter.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/titter. Accessed 13 Oct. 2024.

Kids Definition

titter

verb
tit·​ter ˈtit-ər How to pronounce titter (audio)
: to laugh in a nervous manner or while trying to hold the laugh back
titter noun

More from Merriam-Webster on titter

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!