haw-haw
/'hɔ:'hɔ:/
Học thuậtThân thiện
Definition
- Noun:
- A ditch with one side being a retaining wall: A type of sunken fence or ha-ha, used as a boundary in a garden or landscape that does not interrupt the view.
- A loud laugh that sounds like a horse neighing: A boisterous, often rude or mocking laugh that resembles the sound a horse makes.
Examples of Usage
Noun (Ditch):
- The estate's ha-ha, or haw-haw, kept the sheep out of the formal gardens without a visible fence.
- They walked right up to the haw-haw before realizing there was a deep ditch.
Noun (Laugh):
- His loud haw-haw echoed across the room, drawing everyone's attention.
- She let out a derisive haw-haw at his clumsy attempt.
Advanced Usage
- "to give a haw-haw": to emit such a loud, neighing laugh.
- The villain in the play gave a menacing haw-haw.
Variants and Related Words
- Ha-ha (n): This is the more common modern spelling for the landscape feature (the sunken fence). "Haw-haw" is an older or variant spelling.
- Guffaw (n): A loud, hearty laugh. This is a more common synonym for the sound of laughter.
Synonyms
- For the laugh: guffaw, bray, cachinnation, horse laugh.
- For the ditch: sunken fence, ha-ha, sunk fence, ditch.
Related Phrases
- Horse laugh: A coarse, loud laugh, very similar in meaning to "haw-haw" when referring to laughter.
Related Idioms
- To laugh like a horse: To laugh in a very loud and uninhibited way. This idiom is directly related to the meaning of "haw-haw" as a type of laugh.
Noun
- a ditch with one side being a retaining wall; used to divide lands without defacing the landscape
- a loud laugh that sounds like a horse neighing