Laugh
/læf/noun
To make audible expressions of amusement, joy, or amusement-related emotion.
Did you know?The earliest Germanic ancestors of “laugh” are thought to imitate the sound of laughter itself, making it a possible example of prehistoric sound symbolism.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European (proposed)
PIE
*kleg- / *klak-
“A proposed sound-symbolic root associated with laughing or making sharp vocal sounds; the connection is uncertain.”
Proto-Germanic
PGmc
*hlahjaną
“To laugh; a reconstructed Germanic form probably influenced by the sound of laughter.”
Old English
Old English
hlæhhan
“To laugh.”
Middle English
Middle English
laughen / laughen
“To laugh; spelling and pronunciation began changing as English developed.”
15th–17th Century
English
laugh
“The modern spelling became established, while the pronunciation developed toward /læf/.”
Modern English
English
laugh
“To express amusement or other emotion through vocal sounds and facial movements.”