guffaw
Americannoun
-
guffaws
plural
verb (used without object)
-
guffaws,
present (3rd person singular)
-
guffawed,
past participle, past
-
guffawing
present participle
noun
verb
Other Word Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
guffawsimple
-
guffawssimple
-
have guffawedperfect
-
has guffawedperfect
-
am guffawingprogressive
-
are guffawingprogressive
-
is guffawingprogressive
-
have been guffawingperfect progressive
-
has been guffawingperfect progressive
Past
-
guffawedsimple
-
had guffawedperfect
-
was guffawingprogressive
-
were guffawingprogressive
-
had been guffawingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of guffaw
First recorded in 1710–20; perhaps imitative
Explanation
A guffaw is a belly laugh: a laugh that bubbles up with good feeling and plenty of volume. At the end of a stressful day of work, it’s good to have some guffaws with your friends. Guffaw operates just like the word laugh: you can give a guffaw, or you can guffaw. It comes from the Scottish word gawf, which is onomatopoetic, meaning that it’s spelled the way it sounds. Imagine a big happy Scotsman snorting "gawf, gawf, gawf" at the end of a joke, and you’ll know what a guffaw is.
Vocabulary lists containing guffaw
Instead of "Said": Words for Upbeat Banter
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
The Hobbit
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
Beowulf: A New Telling
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
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:
You can never quite relax, because you're always just waiting for the raise of the eyebrow, the suppressed guffaw, the uninvited joke, whatever.
From BBC ● Apr. 18, 2026
But even now, the news will occasionally let you get off a chuckle or guffaw, even if it isn’t always from your better nature.
From Slate ● Oct. 10, 2025
While the typical person observes Harris’ effervescent guffaw, and thinks, “She seems fun!”
From Salon ● Aug. 10, 2024
Farther on, standing before “Pay Nothing Until April,” an exceptional 2003 painting that I hadn’t seen before, I let out an involuntary guffaw.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 20, 2023
He laughs at something Mrs. Pearl says, and people two streets over probably hear that guffaw of his.
From "The Hate U Give" by Angie Thomas
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
They realized that these comments got a rise out of the girls and drew guffaws from the other boys; Amanda saw them looking around the classroom for reactions after saying something particularly shocking.
From Slate ● Dec. 5, 2025
"Someone wrote their number on a tissue the other day and I was like, 'Oh no, you're just not my type'," she guffaws.
From BBC ● Sep. 29, 2025
We know that his coalition of giggles and guffaws is far from monolithic.
From Salon ● Nov. 18, 2024
They’re fighting for control of our psychic selves; the empathy box on one hand, Buster’s guffaws and off-the-cuff jibes on the other.
From "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?" by Philip K. Dick
Still, I guffawed when Becket popped back into his present-day cell to poke fun at his audience, the Catholic priest: “The last thing the Church wanted was an investigation,” he says with a smirk.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 18, 2026
It is no exaggeration to say I guffawed my way through it.
From Salon ● Dec. 26, 2023
At various points, others groaned and guffawed at Mr Gaetz's comments.
From BBC ● Oct. 3, 2023
And Kimmel guffawed at Fox’s attempts to spin the settlement in its favor, including a network statement that insisted it “reflects FOX’s continued commitment to the highest journalistic standards.”
From Washington Post ● Apr. 19, 2023
Malfoy howled with derisive laughter; Crabbe and Goyle guffawed stupidly.
From "Harry Potter And The Goblet Of Fire" by J. K. Rowling
As one guffawing TikToker put it, “Tim Burton was so tired of people saying that he don’t be putting Black people in his movies that he said, ‘Here!
From Salon ● Sep. 15, 2024
From beneath his silver helmet, Martin was guffawing.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 24, 2022
About an hour later, however, I was guffawing so hard at Anderson’s everyday observations, endearing familial impressions and lithe, in-the-moment wit, that he started heckling me for being too enamored with the show.
From Washington Post ● Jan. 21, 2022
I was just saying, how nature was amazing and then, unfortunately, the audience started guffawing.
From Slate ● Apr. 25, 2021
For several minutes the two gringos shot at the boulder, guffawing in the distance.
From "Lupita Mañana" by Patricia Beatty
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.
