cackle
Americanverb (used without object)
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to utter a shrill, broken sound or cry, as of a hen.
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to laugh in a shrill, broken manner.
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to chatter noisily; prattle.
verb (used with object)
noun
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the act or sound of cackling.
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chatter; idle talk.
verb
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(intr) (esp of a hen) to squawk with shrill notes
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(intr) to laugh or chatter raucously
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(tr) to utter in a cackling manner
noun
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the noise or act of cackling
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noisy chatter
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informal to stop chattering; be quiet
Other Word Forms
- cackler noun
Etymology
Origin of cackle
1175–1225; Middle English cakelen; cognate with Dutch kakelen, Low German kakeln, Swedish kackla
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Daisy laughed so loud it scared our old hens and they all started cackling.
From Literature
"And so indeed, I must beg his pardon," she cackled.
From Literature
Then came a cackling laugh from behind him.
From Literature
I can practically hear those two cackling over their macchiatos.
We sat back, and he took a bite of plantain and blew steam out of his mouth, cackling heartily.
From Literature
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
