# laughter

Pronunciation: US say "LAF-tur" /ˈlæftɚ/; UK say "LAHF-tuh" /ˈlɑːftə/

## Noun

1. The sound of laughing, produced by air pushed out from the lungs; also any similar sound.
   - Simple: The sound people make when they laugh.
   - _Laughter erupted from the audience as the comedian delivered his punchline._
   - _The recording captured the bubbling laughter of the infant._
2. An involuntary movement of the facial muscles and body, with a distinctive look in the eyes, showing amusement, satisfaction, or scorn, usually with bursts of air from the lungs.
   - Simple: A movement of your face and body showing you are happy, pleased, or making fun of something.
   - _The comedian's gestures sent the crowd into convulsions of laughter._
   - _She bent over double, her face contorted with helpless laughter._

## Noun

3. A cause of merriment; a reason for amusement or mirth. *(archaic)*
   - Simple: Something that gives people a reason to laugh.
   - _His vain posturing made him a laughter throughout the town._
   - _The knight's blunder became a laughter at every tavern in the realm._

## Origin

From Middle English "laughter," from Old English "hleahtor" (laughter, jubilation, derision), from Proto-Germanic "*hlahtraz" (laughter) and ultimately from a Proto-Indo-European root meaning "to shout." It is related to German "Gelächter," Danish and Norwegian "latter," and Icelandic "hlátur," all meaning laughter.

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/laughter (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).