CRACKING (UP) Synonyms: 120 Similar and Opposite Words

cracking up

verb

present participle of crack up

as in applauding

to declare enthusiastic approval of that sports car isn't all it's cracked up to be

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in crying up

to praise or publicize lavishly and often excessively the movie is being cracked up as the blockbuster of the summer

Synonyms & Similar Words

as in laughing

to show mirth with an explosive vocal sound try not to crack up at your own punch lines—it's funnier if you keep a straight face

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of cracking up What’s more, cracking up triggers chemical changes that prompt the inner lining of blood vessels to dilate and improve blood flow. — Don Riddell, CNN Money, 20 Sep. 2026 Mark Toothaker, a stallion sales manager for Spendthrift Farm in Lexington, Kentucky, was on the couch cracking up with his wife, Malory, about the whiffed field goal and consequential turnover. — Kelly O'Grady, CBS News, 3 May 2026 The dogs were confused, not sure whether to attack or run for cover, and Susan was cracking up. — Sid Evans, Southern Living, 18 Feb. 2026 The camera cut to O’Leary cracking up in the audience. — Brian Hiatt, Rolling Stone, 11 Jan. 2026 Winner This week's winner left us cracking up with his acting skills. — Liz O'Connell, MSNBC Newsweek, 6 Dec. 2025 Kathy — who has earned an enormous fan base thanks to her honesty and lack of pretense on the Bravo reality series — had the crowd at the Caesars Forum convention center cracking up from the moment the panel began. — Eric Andersson, PEOPLE, 15 Nov. 2025 The woods may be overrun, this year, with cabins in the woods capable of cracking up couples by laying all their faults bare. — Angie Han, HollywoodReporter, 13 Nov. 2025 Later, as the film plays, the crowd bursts intermittently into laughter, cracking up at the clown-car quality of everyone piling into the van for the first time. — Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 14 Oct. 2025

Recent Examples of Synonyms for cracking up

Verb

So how did that work out for you, with this whole world applauding you for this, and then knowing people are pissed off too?

— Chris Willman, Variety, 1 Oct. 2026
The post was accompanied by pictures of him in a Man City shirt celebrating with club chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak, lifting the Champions League trophy, applauding the fans and celebrating the Premier League title in 2023.

— ABC News, ABC News, 30 Sep. 2026

Definition of applauding

Verb

The Real Cost Of Handover The Build-Operate-Transfer model is still a brilliant, highly effective way to build global capability without blowing up your balance sheet.

— Thanh Pham, Forbes.com, 25 Sep. 2026
On September 7 two other mathematicians used their program (and AI) to produce a blowup for a frictionless fluid—considered a major step toward blowing up Navier-Stokes.

— Joseph Howlett, Scientific American, 21 Sep. 2026

Definition of blowing up

Verb

Still laughing, though, at sanctimonious Yankees fans believing baseball is somehow unfair to the poor, gutty Yankees.

— Bill Shaikin, Los Angeles Times, 28 Sep. 2026
The sweet gallery opens with Rocki tugging at a large wig placed on her head as Rihanna can be heard laughing in the background.

— Mitchell Peters, Billboard, 27 Sep. 2026

Definition of laughing

Verb

In Rubin’s case, that amounted to a single video of him speaking at the event, while Ventura posted nearly two dozen times praising Hilton or attacking Becerra.

— Ben Paviour, Sacbee.com, 2 Oct. 2026
Rather than rebut them, Paxton uses footage of his daughter Mattie Hayworth praising him as a fighter for family values and role model for his grandchildren.

— Matthew Choi, Washington Post, 2 Oct. 2026

Definition of praising

Verb

The Kennedy Center is already running late, compared to past years, in announcing the honorees.

— Paul Grein, Billboard, 2 Oct. 2026
This week, City Hall and the DCLA are announcing an increase in funding for direct-support grants to artists, administered by each borough’s local arts council.

— Maximilíano Durón, ARTnews.com, 2 Oct. 2026

Definition of announcing

Verb

This approach worked for Jean Nelson of Pasadena, California, after her 2-year-old son, Luke, took delight in dragging toilet paper down the hall, giggling as the roll unfurled behind him.

— Cynthia Hanson, Parents, 13 Sep. 2026
In the video, Hilton’s 3-year-old son Phoenix can be seen giggling as the puppy playfully chases him around the room while 2-year-old sister London looks on.

— Catherine Santino, PEOPLE, 1 Sep. 2026

Definition of giggling

Verb

Baidu’s Apollo Go has quietly become, by trip volume, arguably the largest autonomous ride-hailing operation in the world, with more than 20 million cumulative rides and a footprint spanning more than two dozen cities on four continents.

— Interesting Engineering, Interesting Engineering, 30 Sep. 2026
Now, Scott is back on the big screen with what many are hailing — like our own Anne Thompson and the good people of the TIFF audience — as his next big contending role.

— Kate Erbland, IndieWire, 28 Sep. 2026

Definition of hailing

Verb

Passengers traveling from Manhattan can also connect to the BLADEone aircraft at Westchester County Airport by helicopter, with BLADE advertising the helicopter transfer at approximately 12 minutes.

— Prabhat Ranjan Mishra, Interesting Engineering, 3 Oct. 2026
So … universities are investing in their sports programs and advertising them hard.

— Cooper Katz McKim, NPR, 2 Oct. 2026

Definition of advertising

Browse Nearby Words

cracking (on)

cracking up

cracking wise

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“Cracking up.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/cracking%20up. Accessed 6 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of cracking up

verb

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