underlaughter en · NOUN
Pronunciation
- (US) audio
Etymology
Probably derived from Middle English underlaughteren (“to smirk”), Middle English underlaughen (“to smile; smile with the eyes”), equivalent to under- + laughter.
Meanings
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(uncountable) Suppressed laughter or laughing
Herrick could not guide Corinna, and Pope could not guide Mrs. Blount, into a definite, satisfying image because their ladies were too multiform and subtle, too likely to recede into airy sourire, underlaughter, to permit any resolution, any pinning tot he wall; […]
1985, Daniel Albright, Lyricality in English literature, page 126:“Of course I am, thank you,” said Clover in a voice which also he would hardly have recognized, so gay was it with a ripple of underlaughter.
1922, Berta Ruck, The Subconscious Courtship, page 340: