giggle
Americanverb (used without object)
-
giggles,
present (3rd person singular)
-
giggled,
past participle, past
-
giggling
present participle
verb
noun
-
such a laugh
-
informal something or someone that provokes amusement
-
a fit of prolonged and uncontrollable giggling
-
informal as a joke or prank; not seriously
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
gigglesimple
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gigglessimple
-
have giggledperfect
-
has giggledperfect
-
am gigglingprogressive
-
are gigglingprogressive
-
is gigglingprogressive
-
have been gigglingperfect progressive
-
has been gigglingperfect progressive
Past
-
giggledsimple
-
had giggledperfect
-
was gigglingprogressive
-
were gigglingprogressive
-
had been gigglingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of giggle
1500–10; imitative; compare Dutch gigelen, German gickeln. See -le
Explanation
If you laugh with a dainty tee-hee-hee, you giggle. Children giggle a lot. Big strong men are more likely to guffaw or issue a big belly laugh. The word giggle has been around since about the 16th century, and yet, it has no Latin or Greek roots. Most likely the word is an imitation of the silly sound you make when you laugh like this. If you and your friends have hidden a frog on your teacher's desk, when she enters the room and moves towards it, you will probably begin giggling — you know something funny is about to happen and you're a little nervous about it.
Vocabulary lists containing giggle
Instead of "Said": Words for Upbeat Banter
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Unit 1: Telling Details
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"Charlotte's Web": Chapter One
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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:
Humiliation follows humiliation: At an audition, unseen men in the dark feed him lines with sibilants so they can giggle at his lisp.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 5, 2026
Still, Todd doesn’t like the way Hal and Grace giggle together in secret.
From Salon ● Oct. 22, 2026
“But they usually have a giggle and sometimes walk out with a bag full of goodies, too.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 25, 2026
Actors would know when a joke landed when they would hear Burrows giggle as the scene unfolded.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 19, 2026
Audrey stifled a giggle as I nudged her.
From "Keep It Together, Keiko Carter" by Debbi Michiko Florence
This portion of the curriculum, naturally, came with plenty of giggles and whispers.
From Salon ● Jun. 22, 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
When Close introduced herself and shook her hand, she was left starstruck, and got the giggles when Mila Kunis mistook her for an extra, rather than an actual vicar.
From BBC ● Nov. 28, 2025
It isn’t quite silly season yet, but the giggles are starting.
From Barron's ● Oct. 10, 2025
The frantic giggles were quick, and she leaned her head back again.
From "Anger Is a Gift" by Mark Oshiro
"I think we just all giggled for a long time."
From BBC ● Sep. 19, 2026
Though many in Hollywood have giggled at the idea of a major studio moving to the South, it isn’t totally ridiculous.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 18, 2026
"I feel silly," giggled Ruiloba, a 34-year-old doctor.
From Barron's ● Jan. 11, 2026
You know how you giggled every time someone said “Tush Push”? You know how you held the football and stared at the Roger Goodell signature for 10 minutes?
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 26, 2025
She fiddled with her white headscarf, dimples creasing and front teeth protruding as she giggled and launched seamlessly back into song, arms upheld, motioning us to join in.
From "Flying Through Water" by Mamle Wolo
Beavis and Butt-head might leave chaos and destruction in their muttering, giggling wake, but they rarely suffer lasting harm themselves.
From Salon ● Sep. 6, 2026
"And then Jimothy shows up and for one brief weird moment everyone is on the same page - rooting for this little gremlin, giggling at his name, feeling weirdly connected to strangers over absolutely nothing."
From BBC ● Jul. 24, 2026
Fan-edited montages of the pair embracing, giggling and jumping into each other's arms are all over social media.
From BBC ● Jul. 11, 2026
Beneath azure skies and fluffy white clouds, three giggling toddlers and their mothers arrive at a candy-colored water park in the town of CoComelon.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 12, 2026
Poor Elsie can’t stop giggling after asking for a sample of the Chocolate Chip Chuckles flavor.
From "Amari and the Night Brothers" by B.B. Alston
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Get a wordDefinitions 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.
