Cachinnate
Verb
- Laugh loudly.
Example Sentences
“My husband was making funny faces to keep the kids cachinnating in the back seat.”
“The group of friends in the back booth were cachinnating louder than anyone else in the bar.”
“The actor couldn’t stay in character after a stray cat running across the stage caused him to cachinnate in the middle of a somber scene.”
Word Origin
Latin, early 19th century
Why this word?
This verb comes from the Latin “cachinnat-,” which translates to “laughed loudly.” It’s the past tense of the verb “cachinnare,” which is believed to be of imitative origin, or an onomatopoeia. So, if you ever wondered what people in Roman times sounded like when they were laughing loudly, try saying “cachinnare” (pronounced “ka-khin-NAH-reh”) several times quickly.