The spelling of the word "laughable" can be explained using IPA phonetic transcription. The word begins with the /l/ sound, followed by the /ɑː/ vowel sound, which is then followed by the /f/ sound. The next sound is /əl/, which is a syllabic consonant. The final sound is /bəl/, which represents the /b/ sound followed by another syllabic consonant. This spelling accurately represents the pronunciation of the word, which means something is amusing or ridiculous enough to cause laughter.
The adjective "laughable" describes something that is so absurd, amusing, or ridiculous that it provokes laughter or amusement. It denotes a quality or characteristic that is comical, often leading to mockery or ridicule. When something is laughable, it is typically deemed worthy of laughter due to its lack of seriousness, logic, or reason.
Laughable can refer to a wide range of situations, ideas, concepts, or actions that are considered comically foolish or nonsensical. It can describe something as trivial as a silly joke or pun that elicits chuckles or as grandiose and ludicrous as an outlandish claim or an unrealistic proposal. Essentially, laughable is an adjective used to emphasize the lack of credibility, rationality, or practicality of a particular thing or notion.
The term laughable is subjective and can be influenced by personal opinions, cultural contexts, or individual senses of humor. What may be laughable to one person might not be to someone else. Despite this, the general idea underlying the term remains relatively consistent—something laughable is deemed frivolous, ridiculous, or absurd enough to warrant amusement or ridicule.
Of a kind to excite laughter; droll.
Etymological and pronouncing dictionary of the English language. By Stormonth, James, Phelp, P. H. Published 1874.
* The statistics data for these misspellings percentages are collected from over 15,411,110 spell check sessions on www.spellchecker.net from Jan 2010 - Jun 2012.
The word "laughable" is derived from the verb "laugh", which dates back to Old English. The Old English verb "hlehhan" originally meant "to make the explosive sound characteristic of laughter". From the verb, the noun "laughter" emerged, which eventually led to the development of the adjective "laughable". The word "laughter" can be traced back further to the Proto-Germanic root "*hlahjanan". Over time, "laughable" came to refer to something deserving of laughter or provoking amusement or ridicule.