1
as in giggles
to show mirth with an explosive vocal sound
everyone laughed when the clown dramatically slipped and fell
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in smiles
to express scornful amusement by means of facial contortions
you're going to try out for the football team? Don't make me laugh!
Synonyms & Similar Words
1
as in chuckles
an explosive sound that is a sign of amusement
the child's frown turned into a laugh when he saw the clown
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in hoots
someone or something that is very funny
that new sitcom is a laugh
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in jokes
something said or done to cause laughter
the film comedy had a good laugh in just about every scene
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of laughs
Emily Chang, ABC News, 19 Mar. 2026
And Newton kept the crowd going with screams and laughs through tonight’s screening, sitting right behind her co-star Shawn Hatosy.
—Dessi Gomez, Deadline, 13 Mar. 2026
Tony Benna, listening on the same Zoom call, laughs at the story.
—David Fear, Rolling Stone, 7 Mar. 2026
Jean Franklin, center, laughs with her sons, Louis (right) and Charlie, and Charlie's girlfriend, Masha Billingsley.
—Christine Mai-Duc, CBS News, 26 Feb. 2026
Son laughs when asked about that decision.
—Charlie Campbell, Time, 24 Feb. 2026
When Samantha asks how to go about fixing that problem, Louge laughs.
—Maggie Fremont, Vulture, 23 Feb. 2026
Lucy laughs and registers that she was just played, again, and Van Patten believes this is the moment that Lucy can finally be free of Stephen.
—Jackie Strause, HollywoodReporter, 18 Feb. 2026
Robbie laughs, despite likely having heard the story before.
—Emily Zemler, Los Angeles Times, 11 Feb. 2026
Vinson Cunningham, New Yorker, 29 Mar. 2026
Styled like a hyper-sexualized Powerpuff Girl, Cherry is responsible for many of the film’s biggest laughs — and some of its strangest tonal misfires.
—Alison Foreman, IndieWire, 25 Mar. 2026
At the end of his questioning of Rubio, Shohat asked Rubio for his autograph to laughs from the courtroom.
—Jacob Rosen, CBS News, 24 Mar. 2026
But beyond the laughs, de Wolf sees a larger purpose in the invention.
—Ryan Brennan, Kansas City Star, 24 Mar. 2026
Shock and confusion followed by tears and laughs.
—Chris Willman, Variety, 23 Mar. 2026
Briggs said he was told the moment elicited laughs.
—Teri Figueroa, San Diego Union-Tribune, 22 Mar. 2026
The quick and confident response sparked a handful of laughs from those who have covered Lagrange’s emergence this spring.
—Gary Phillips, New York Daily News, 18 Mar. 2026
Over his generous pours of cheap beer and dive-bar cocktails, aging All-Americans and national champions told stories about their old coach, mixing in laughs with the occasional Holtz imitation.
—Andrew Carter, Chicago Tribune, 17 Mar. 2026
Verb
The remark drew a mix of gasps, murmurs and laughs from others in the room.
—Emily Chang, ABC News, 19 Mar. 2026
And Newton kept the crowd going with screams and laughs through tonight’s screening, sitting right behind her co-star Shawn Hatosy.
—Dessi Gomez, Deadline, 13 Mar. 2026
Tony Benna, listening on the same Zoom call, laughs at the story.
—David Fear, Rolling Stone, 7 Mar. 2026
Jean Franklin, center, laughs with her sons, Louis (right) and Charlie, and Charlie's girlfriend, Masha Billingsley.
—Christine Mai-Duc, CBS News, 26 Feb. 2026
Son laughs when asked about that decision.
—Charlie Campbell, Time, 24 Feb. 2026
When Samantha asks how to go about fixing that problem, Louge laughs.
—Maggie Fremont, Vulture, 23 Feb. 2026
Lucy laughs and registers that she was just played, again, and Van Patten believes this is the moment that Lucy can finally be free of Stephen.
—Jackie Strause, HollywoodReporter, 18 Feb. 2026
Robbie laughs, despite likely having heard the story before.
—Emily Zemler, Los Angeles Times, 11 Feb. 2026
Noun
The guys hit a Foxwoods, get some laughs, and skip back home.
—Vinson Cunningham, New Yorker, 29 Mar. 2026
Styled like a hyper-sexualized Powerpuff Girl, Cherry is responsible for many of the film’s biggest laughs — and some of its strangest tonal misfires.
—Alison Foreman, IndieWire, 25 Mar. 2026
At the end of his questioning of Rubio, Shohat asked Rubio for his autograph to laughs from the courtroom.
—Jacob Rosen, CBS News, 24 Mar. 2026
But beyond the laughs, de Wolf sees a larger purpose in the invention.
—Ryan Brennan, Kansas City Star, 24 Mar. 2026
Shock and confusion followed by tears and laughs.
—Chris Willman, Variety, 23 Mar. 2026
Briggs said he was told the moment elicited laughs.
—Teri Figueroa, San Diego Union-Tribune, 22 Mar. 2026
The quick and confident response sparked a handful of laughs from those who have covered Lagrange’s emergence this spring.
—Gary Phillips, New York Daily News, 18 Mar. 2026
Over his generous pours of cheap beer and dive-bar cocktails, aging All-Americans and national champions told stories about their old coach, mixing in laughs with the occasional Holtz imitation.
—Andrew Carter, Chicago Tribune, 17 Mar. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for laughs
Verb
-
Her daughter giggles as she's swung throughout the air, until Moore realizes that something isn't quite right.—
Hannah Sacks,
PEOPLE,
9 Jan. 2026
-
The teaser video that followed showed a device straight out of a sci-fi film, something between Wall-E and BB-8, with a camera that giggles and swivels on command.—
Aamir Khollam,
Interesting Engineering,
15 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
And Jacob Elordi smiles and raises his fist as the hair/makeup team shout out the actor for sitting in a makeup chair for 400 hours to become the Creature.—
Brian Truitt,
USA Today,
16 Mar. 2026
-
Fortune rarely smiles twice on the same backside.—
Sean Keeler,
Denver Post,
10 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
His children's reflections were poetic in the style of the late civil rights icon — filled with prayer, tears and a few chuckles, including about disagreements that occur when growing up in a large, lively family.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
18 Feb. 2026
-
His children’s reflections were poetic in the style of the late civil rights icon — filled with prayer, tears and a few chuckles, including about disagreements that occur when growing up in a large, lively family.—
Sophia Tareen,
Los Angeles Times,
18 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Owl hoots are most effective at striking up turkeys when owls are naturally active, which is around dawn and dusk.—
Natalie Krebs,
Outdoor Life,
11 Mar. 2026
-
The Blackhawks dressing room was a rowdy scene after the game, their hoots and hollers reverberating throughout the bowels of the United Center.—
Mark Lazerus,
New York Times,
3 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
The text messages contained jokes about gas chambers, slavery, and rape.—
Peter Wehner,
The Atlantic,
23 Mar. 2026
-
The arm measurement spawned numerous online jokes, comparing Bain’s arms to those of a Tyrannosaurus Rex, a dinosaur with short arms.—
Adam Lichtenstein,
Sun Sentinel,
23 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
An explosion of green paint can be seen as Islas stumbles and screams in pain.—
James Queally,
Los Angeles Times,
19 Mar. 2026
-
Slayr raps, sings, and screams across this thing, producing most of it himself with frequent contributions from the producer wa.—
Mano Sundaresan,
Pitchfork,
18 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Meanwhile her old-school Communist grandmother sneers at the tactics her Red Diaper daughter employed.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
6 Jan. 2026
-
Jacob sneers, but doesn’t even wait for his son to answer.—
Kimberly Roots,
TVLine,
15 Aug. 2025
Verb
-
Jesus grins when asked which of the two pushes players harder in training.—
Mario Cortegana,
New York Times,
20 Mar. 2026
-
The suspect in a stabbing in Edinburgh, Scotland, grins out a window before his arrest, March 2, 2026.—
Lindsay Quella,
CBS News,
2 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Laughs.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/laughs. Accessed 31 Mar. 2026.
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