English[]
Etymology[]
Old English hleahtor, from Proto-Germanic *hlahtroz. Cognate with German lachen, Dutch (ge)lach(en), Icelandic hlátur, Danish latter.
Pronunciation[]
- (UK) IPA: /ˈlɑːftə/, SAMPA: /"lA:ft@/
- (US) enPR: lăfʹtər, IPA: /ˈlæftɚ/, SAMPA: /"l{ft@`/
Audio (US) noicon (file) - Rhymes: -ɑːftə(r)
Noun[]
Singular |
Plural |
Laughter (-)
- The sound of laughing, produced by air so expelled; any similar sound.
- Their loud laughter betrayed their presence
- A movement (usually involuntary) of the muscles of the laughing face, particularly of the lips, with a peculiar expression of the eyes, indicating merriment, satisfaction or derision, and usually attended by a sonorous and interrupted expulsion of air from the lungs.
- The act of laughter, which is a sweet contraction of the muscles of the face, and a pleasant agitation of the vocal organs, is not merely, or totally within the jurisdiction of ourselves. - Sir Thomas Browne
- Archly the maiden smiled, and with eyes overrunning with laughter - Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
- (archaic) A reason for merriment
- (Can we verify(+) this sense?) (slang) A decidedly one-sided sports contest, especially where the winning team is able to score at will.
- The final score of the football game was 70-0; what a laughter it was.
Related terms[]
Translations[]
sound (as) of laughing
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movement of the muscles of the laughing face
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a decidedly one-sided sports contest
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- The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables, removing any numbers. Numbers do not necessarily match those in definitions. See instructions at Help:How to check translations.
Translations to be checked
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ang:laughter ar:laughter de:laughter et:laughter el:laughter fr:laughter ko:laughter hy:laughter it:laughter kn:laughter sw:laughter hu:laughter ml:laughter ja:laughter oc:laughter pt:laughter ru:laughter simple:laughter fi:laughter ta:laughter te:laughter vi:laughter zh:laughter