chortle
Americanverb (used without object)
verb (used with object)
noun
verb
noun
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
chortlesimple
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chortlessimple
-
have chortledperfect
-
has chortledperfect
-
am chortlingprogressive
-
are chortlingprogressive
-
is chortlingprogressive
-
have been chortlingperfect progressive
-
has been chortlingperfect progressive
Past
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chortledsimple
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had chortledperfect
-
was chortlingprogressive
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were chortlingprogressive
-
had been chortlingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of chortle
Blend of chuckle and snort; coined by Lewis Carroll in Through the Looking-Glass (1871)
Explanation
A chortle is a joyful, partly muffled laugh. If you have a toddler, you will recognize the sound of a delighted chortle, sort of louder and a bit more raucous than a giggle. In 1871, Lewis Carroll, who wrote Alice in Wonderland, coined the word chortle in the poem "Jabberwocky," about a son who slays a monster and comes back to his relieved and happy father: "'O frabjous day! Callooh! Callay!' He chortled in his joy." Experts consider the word a blend of the words chuckle and snort and the laugh itself is also a cross between the two. You may chortle in glee if you find out your work nemesis just got a new job in another office — out of state.
Vocabulary lists containing chortle
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone
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Instead of "Said": Words for Upbeat Banter
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List 8
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
I'll miss our chats and I'll miss catching him off guard and making him chortle.
From BBC ● Apr. 15, 2026
If Kate DiCamillo wrote a book about a box of Swiffer refills, it would probably make us chortle and sob about lint.
From Seattle Times ● Oct. 17, 2023
Now, a new, more virile chortle has risen to take its place.
From Slate ● Aug. 10, 2023
The rest of us will be content to drool at each of Bertha's fabulous dresses or chortle at Agnes' quick comebacks.
From Salon ● Jan. 25, 2022
Nyame breaks into a sarcastic chortle at his own joke.
From "Kwame Crashes the Underworld" by Craig Kofi Farmer
"With a wig and a moustache," he chortles, while wearing the sort of sheepskin coat that even Del Boy might have rejected on taste grounds.
From BBC ● May 13, 2026
The name Hank McCune may be lost to history, but his short-lived television sitcom will forever be remembered for its chuckles, chortles, giggles and guffaws.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 22, 2026
It’s scathing; it made me snort rage chortles aloud as I read.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 22, 2023
“What’s that shiny ring you got there? … Well, OK, I’m not gonna take it from you. That seems really precious to you,” he says as the audience chortles.
From Seattle Times ● Nov. 29, 2023
The hens spilled out of the doorway and started pecking at the grass with little chortles of glee.
From "Unusual Chickens for the Exceptional Poultry Farmer" by Kelly Jones
Right now, the general feeling toward Pence among Trump allies is sympathy, said one Republican in frequent touch with the White House, who chortled and said, “Poor guy.”
From Washington Post ● Jan. 5, 2021
“It sounds like something I would say,” said the humble ambassador, as he chortled out loud.
From The Guardian ● Nov. 20, 2019
It’s something of an inside joke and every time he punched the line, everyone chortled.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 15, 2019
Stoya: I straight-up chortled when I was reading the question through for the first time.
From Slate ● May 23, 2019
They chortled delightedly to themselves while I tried to come up with a different song to sing.
From "The Name of the Wind" by Patrick Rothfuss
“OK, I think I can,” he relents, before chortling and adding: “I seriously don’t want to.”
From BBC ● Oct. 14, 2024
Soon enough, I was chortling right alongside him.
From Salon ● Jun. 25, 2023
Rogers, for her part, is chortling all the way to her campaign treasurer’s office.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 13, 2023
Jesters on social media have already begun chortling about this movie’s minimalist title.
From New York Times ● Jan. 12, 2023
Still chortling, Fudge had thrown some powder into the fireplace, stepped into the emerald flames, and vanished with a whooshing sound.
From "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince" by J.K. Rowling
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
