ha-ha

Etymology

Definitions

1. 1

   An approximation of the sound of laughter.

2. 2

   A laugh.

   • His ha-ha grated on our ears as he fled down the stairs three steps at a time with us in hot pursuit.
   • Ha-has from both sides of the door.
   • We had a fine dinner, punctuated with Heidi's loud ha-has and lots of wine.
3. 3

   Something funny

   Something funny; a joke.

   • Durty Nelly's, […] You'll catch a few ha-has and even a golden memory or two singing along with the house piano player.
   • She is not rewarded until she learns to reduce her expectations, and surprises (the ha-has of this novel) are the educational tool.
   • If Kathy had been with us, she'd have countered with a few ha-has of her own, thus guaranteeing a laugh at his expense.
4. ›+ 2 more definitionsshow fewer

   1. 4

      To laugh.

      • Out with the fashion that will let a man smile, but pronounces him vulgar if he ha-ha’s.
      • She ha-ha’d like a boy over the sport.
   2. 5

      A ditch with one vertical side, acting as a sunken fence, designed to block the entry of…

      A ditch with one vertical side, acting as a sunken fence, designed to block the entry of animals into lawns and parks without breaking sightlines.

      • A few steps farther brought them out at the bottom of the very walk they had been talking of; and standing back, well shaded and sheltered, and looking over a ha-ha into the park, was a comfortable-sized bench, on which they all sat down.
      • A moody stroll through the oaks and bracken beyond the ha-ha didn't help.

The neighborhood