Chortle

verb

To chuckle in a gleeful, breathy fashion.

noun

An amused, slightly suppressed, and snorting laugh.

Usage

Chortle is most commonly used as a verb to describe the expression of a soft laugh. As it is playful in nature, chortle is usually associated with children. The verb can take both the transitive and intransitive forms as chortles, chortled, or chortling, though it is usually applied in the intransitive form. Chortle almost always has a positive connotation because it is a gleeful sound, and it tends to appear in situations involving friends or people in close relationships. However, the nature of chortle can change depending on the context. If someone is chortling as a response to a rude remark, then clearly it is not used in its traditional jovial application.

The noun form of chortle is not seen quite as frequently, but both forms hold essentially the same meaning. A chortle is a somewhat muffled laugh. As a noun, the word simply describes the sound being made rather than the making of the sound. A chortle typically follows an amusing or entertaining action, like hearing a joke or being tickled.

Example: When I tell a joke, my goal is to make someone chortle.

Example: She could distinctly hear her child's chortle while playing hide and seek.

Derivative Words

Chortles is a present tense of the verb.

Example: She chortles as her friend reenacts a scene from a comedy show.

Chortled is the past tense of the verb.

Example: The little boy chortled with delight at his own clever joke.

Chortling is the present tense of the verb, but the word can also appear in this form as a gerund.

Example: We noticed the teacher chortling as she recalled anecdotes from her youth.

Chortler (Plural: Chortlers) is a noun that describes one who chortles.

Example: The young child is a chortler, especially when playing board games.

Origin

Chortle appeared around 1871, when Lewis Caroll published Through the Looking Glass. In his poem "Jabberwocky," chortle made in the line:

And hast though slain the Jabberwock?
Come to my arms, my beamish boy!
O frabjous day! Callooh! Callay!'
He chortled in his joy.

Experts are not completely certain of the exact construction Caroll used, but many agree that chortle is a combination of "snort" and "chuckle." Caroll probably merged the two words together to describe accurately the jubilant and snorting laughter. At first, the word was only used as a verb, but by the early nineteen hundreds chortle had become valid as a noun.

Literary Reference:

From J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets:

"Yeah, he's off to the Chamber of Secrets for a cup of tea with his fanged servant," said George, chortling.

Here, chortle is used to describe how the character found the situation amusing. The author probably meant it to be more of a snicker than a giggle, given the teasing nature of the quote.

Mnemonic

Children chortle and chuckle.