English

Noun

guffaw ‎(plural guffaws)

1. A boisterous laugh
   • 1847, Emily Brontë, Wuthering Heights, Chapter II

     On opening the little door, two hairy monsters flew at my throat, bearing me down, and extinguishing the light; while a mingled guffaw from Heathcliff and Hareton put the copestone on my rage and humiliation.

   • 1906, Arthur Conan Doyle, Sir Nigel, ch. xx,

     He walked to the edge and they heard his hoarse guffaw of laughter as the arrows clanged and clattered against his impenetrable mail.

   • 1936, Robert E. Howard, The Hour of the Dragon, ch. 15,

     He heaved up with a sulfurous curse, braced his legs and glared about him, with a burst of coarse guffaws in his ears and the reek of unwashed bodies in his nostrils.

Synonyms

• (boisterous laugh): belly laugh

Translations

Verb

guffaw ‎(third-person singular simple present guffaws, present participle guffawing, simple past and past participle guffawed)

1. (intransitive) To laugh boisterously.
   • 1891, Oscar Wilde, The Picture of Dorian Gray, ch. 15,

     He guffawed at his adversaries.

   • 1900, Stephen Crane, The Knife,

     Peter, on the contrary, threw back his head and guffawed thunderously.

Synonyms

• See also Wikisaurus:laugh

Translations