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Glite Dictionary
to stop laughing

to stop laughing

31 1.0
To stop making sounds and movements when you find something funny
  • phrasal verb
  • /stɑp ˈlæfɪŋ/
translation icon : dejar de reírse
  • Can you please stop laughing?
  • please stop laughing
  • okay, stop laughing
  • Stop laughing now

It's not funny, but I couldn't stop laughing because look how old this one looks.

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Examples

  • Could you just stop laughing for a second and help me into the boat, please?

    The River Wild (1994)

  • When they saw Nina, they stopped laughing, and the room seemed sharply divided.

    Fiction book (1995)

  • - "Stop laughing, all of you!"

    Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs (2009)

  • I'll stop doing them when you stop laughing.

    Shaun of the Dead (2004)

  • "Josh, we're supposed to be quiet!" she said when she was able to stop laughing.

    Fiction book (1993)

  • Jack, I'll write a response if and when I stop laughing every time I read the question.

    Blog text (21)

  • "But how does that explain the fact that Cherry did it?" Lucas stopped laughing.

    Fiction book (1994)

  • You're going to stop laughing now because I need to do this, you know?

  • Kevin, why don't you stop laughing, and calm down, okay?

    Compliance (2012)

  • Can you please stop laughing? It makes it hard to concentrate.

Synonyms

to hold back one's laughter
vsto stop laughing
3.7

To stop yourself from making a sound when something is funny

ceases showing amusement or no longer finds things funny

Antonyms

to laugh
∞ 1.0

To make sounds and move your face or body because something is funny

Surface Forms

stop laughing infinitive
stopped laughing past
stopped laughing past participle
stopping laughing present participle
stops laughing third person singular

Morphology

stop + laugh

The meaning 'to cease to laugh' is directly and transparently derived from combining 'stop' (to cause an action to cease) with 'laugh' (to show amusement). This compositional pattern is straightforward and cross-linguistically common, so a B1 learner who knows both words will readily understand the MWE.

Etymology

Stop laughing comes from the simple image of someone who must stop their laughing by closing their mouth or holding their breath to quiet themselves. That's why it means 'to stop laughing' or 'to no longer find something funny'.