laugh at a joke
/lɑːf æt ə dʒəʊk/
Meaning
This phrase means to show amusement or find something funny by laughing when someone tells a funny story or pun. It is a basic social interaction that indicates humor and connection.
Examples
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It's always nice when people laugh at your jokes.
It's always nice when people laugh at your jokes.
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She couldn't help but laugh at his silly joke.
She couldn't help but laugh at his silly joke.
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Nobody laughed at his joke, which made the room very awkward.
Nobody laughed at his joke, which made the room very awkward.
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Even if it isn't funny, sometimes we just laugh at a joke to be polite.
Even if it isn't funny, sometimes we just laugh at a joke to be polite.
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They were all laughing at a joke that Sarah had just told.
They were all laughing at a joke that Sarah had just told.
Common Mistakes
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✗ Everyone laughed with his joke.
✓ Everyone laughed at his joke.
We laugh 'at' something funny (like a joke or a movie), not 'with' it.
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✗ He made a joke and we laughed it.
✓ He made a joke and we laughed at it.
The verb 'laugh' requires the preposition 'at' when it has an object representing the cause of the laughter.
Related Expressions
Practice
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It's hard not to ___ when Tom is in the room.
💡 Show amusement when someone says something funny
Show answer
laugh at a joke
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She smiled politely but didn't actually ___.
💡 Slight variation: use 'the' instead of 'a'
Show answer
laugh at the joke