laughingstock

noun

laugh·​ing·​stock ˈla-fiŋ-ˌstäk How to pronounce laughingstock (audio)
ˈlä-
: an object of ridicule

Examples of laughingstock in a Sentence

The team has become the laughingstock of the league. The mayor became a laughingstock.
Recent Examples on the Web But what's worse is that Tepper's temper tantrum has drawn even more attention to all that is wrong in Carolina, which has become the laughingstock of the NFL. Steve Reed, USA TODAY, 2 Jan. 2024 The other has been the laughingstock of the NFL for more than a decade. Jon Hoefling, USA TODAY, 21 Jan. 2024 After being traded to the Lions for quarterback Matthew Stafford before the 2021 season, Goff resurrected his career — earning a Pro Bowl selection in 2022 — and helped turn the perennial laughingstock Lions (3-1) into legitimate contenders. Chuck Schilken, Los Angeles Times, 29 Sep. 2023 Houston is back in the playoffs for the first time since 2019, and Stroud’s stellar play and the leadership of Ryans, who’s in his first year, transformed the Texans (11-7) from NFL laughingstock to AFC South champions. Kristie Rieken, Baltimore Sun, 14 Jan. 2024 In 1922, Finch was the laughingstock of his mountaineering circle, showing up to climbs wearing strange pillowy garb made of feathers and hot air balloon fabric while his friends continued to dress in tweed. Tribune News Service, Hartford Courant, 7 Jan. 2024 None of that mattered to Gorrie though, who died a laughingstock at the relatively young age of 51. Amy Brady, Discover Magazine, 2 Dec. 2023 By then, Santos, the U.S. representative for New York’s Third District, was already a laughingstock. Eric Lach, The New Yorker, 1 Dec. 2023 The tent encampments littering its streets have made the city a laughingstock. Andy Kessler, WSJ, 29 Oct. 2023

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

Word History

First Known Use

circa 1518, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of laughingstock was circa 1518

Dictionary Entries Near laughingstock

Cite this Entry

“Laughingstock.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/laughingstock. Accessed 29 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

laughingstock

noun
laugh·​ing·​stock ˈlaf-iŋ-ˌstäk How to pronounce laughingstock (audio)
ˈlȧf-
: a person or thing that is made fun of

More from Merriam-Webster on laughingstock

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