Just for Laughs

Posted on by Robert Eck

My last post discussed some benefits achieved by a simple smile — a good place to start before advancing to a laugh, which in reality is “a smile that bursts.”
(Mary H. Waldrip,1914–1988)

What comprises a laugh? Both Ho Ho, of Santa Claus fame, and Ha Ha work well, as does Hee Hee, along with bevy of other titters. Consider a few laugh variations extracted from the Merriam-Webster Dictionary:

Chuckle: to laugh in a quiet way;
Giggle: to laugh in a nervous or childlike way;
Titter: to laugh in a quiet and nervous way;
Snicker: to make a short quiet laugh in a way that shows disrespect;
Snigger: to snicker, perhaps a condition between a giggle and a snicker;
Guffaw: a loud or boisterous burst of laughter;
Cackle: to laugh noisily;
Cachinate: to laugh loudly or immoderately.
Chortle: a breathy, gleeful laugh.

Interestingly, chortle, an invented word combining “chuckle” and “snort,” originated in the famous poem Jabberwocky. (Lewis Carroll ,“Through the Looking Glass,” 1871). Warning! Do not chortle while eating or drinking, as little good will come of it. You may have to change your shirt.

While old laugh words satisfy; new laugh words are welcome. As chortle combined chuckle and snort, we may consider merging: guffaw with cackle to birth “guffle” or “cackaw;” or giggle with titter to get “gitter,” “tiggle” or ‘tittle, or with snigger, to get “sniggle.” Laughter by any other name would be just as funny, and bring happy results, like the following:

Mirth: happiness and laughter
Glee: a strong feeling of happiness; great pleasure or satisfaction
Gaiety: a happy and lively quality
Merriment: laughter and enjoyment
Risibility: the ability or inclination to laugh. Just try using risibility in a crowd and see if anyone laughs.

Familiar lines inform: “Laugh, and the world laughs with you; Weep, and you weep alone.” (Ella Wheeler Wilcox, 1850–1919). People who laugh attract others; while people who weep, repel them. Simply stated, people prefer to associate themselves with happy folks.

Lastly, an old proverb proclaims: “One who laughs last, laughs best;” but in reality, “the one who laughs last, didn’t get the joke.” (Carroll Bryant, Goodreads)

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