laughing

[laf-ing, lah-fing]

adjective

1. that laughs or is given to laughter.

   a laughing child.

2. uttering sounds like human laughter, as some birds.

3. suggesting laughter by brightness, color, sound, etc..

   a laughing stream; laughing flowers.

4. laughable.

   The increase in crime is no laughing matter.

noun

1. laughter.

Other Word Forms

• laughingly adverb
• unlaughing adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of laughing¹

Middle English word dating back to 1250–1300; laugh, -ing ¹, -ing ²

Example Sentences

“I didn’t want to f— it up,” she says, laughing.

From Los Angeles Times

“Nope,” she says, laughing as she declines to specify — though she notes that she’s not referring to anything in the show.

From Los Angeles Times

“I was a good kid,” he said, laughing.

From Los Angeles Times

Arum, who had done this for years and thought even a $10 closed-circuit ticket would be a stretch, remembers laughing and saying “nobody would ever pay $25 for a closed circuit telecast.”

From Los Angeles Times

"I tried to make him feel I was more on-side. Just by agreeing with him, laughing along with him... making him feel that, you know, he could trust me."

From BBC

Related Words

• humorous