chuckled; chuckling; chuckles
1
: to laugh inwardly or quietly
He chuckled as he read the comic strip.
2
: to make a continuous gentle sound resembling suppressed (see suppress sense 5a) mirth
the clear bright water chuckled over gravel—
B. A. Williams
B. A. Williams
: to utter with a chuckle
Templeton grinned. "I'll tend to this," he chuckled. He took Wilbur's tail in his mouth and bit it … . The pain revived Wilbur.—E. B. White
E. B. WhiteSynonyms
Examples of chuckle in a Sentence
She chuckled at the memory of what he had said.
everyone dutifully chuckled at the professor's intended jokes
Recent Examples on the Web
Seated several feet away as his name came up in relation to picking Foster, Martin Jarmond chuckled.
—Ben Bolch, Los Angeles Times, 4 Nov. 2024
Harris chuckled through the sketch, as Rudolph mimicked the vice president.
—Rebecca Morin, USA TODAY, 3 Nov. 2024
Without a talented ad agency behind you, a good rule of thumb is to go for clever humor that makes people smile or chuckle instead of trying for a side-splitting belly laugh.
—Expert Panel®, Forbes, 29 Oct. 2024
Sensing her struggle, the audience lightly chuckled before cohost Joy Behar piped up.
—Joey Nolfi, EW.com, 22 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for chuckle 
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Ben Bolch, Los Angeles Times, 4 Nov. 2024
Harris chuckled through the sketch, as Rudolph mimicked the vice president.
—Rebecca Morin, USA TODAY, 3 Nov. 2024
Without a talented ad agency behind you, a good rule of thumb is to go for clever humor that makes people smile or chuckle instead of trying for a side-splitting belly laugh.
—Expert Panel®, Forbes, 29 Oct. 2024
Sensing her struggle, the audience lightly chuckled before cohost Joy Behar piped up.
—Joey Nolfi, EW.com, 22 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for chuckle
Dictionary Entries Near chuckle
Cite this Entry
“Chuckle.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/chuckle. Accessed 1 Dec. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
chuckle
verb
chuck·le
ˈchək-əl 
chuckled; chuckling
ˈchək-(ə-)liŋ
: to laugh in a quiet way
chuckle
noun
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