LOL Meaning: What Does Laugh Out Loud Mean?

Meaning 1：laugh out loud (LOL (Laugh Out Loud))

LOL (Laugh Out Loud) 🔊

/lɒl/

abbr.

An abbreviation for Laugh Out Loud, used in online chats to show something is funny.

LOL chat bubble with laughing emojis on smartphone screen

laugh out loud 🔊

➕

/læf aʊt laʊd/

abbr.

An abbreviation used in digital communication to indicate that something is very funny, prompting the reader to imagine the sender laughing out loud.

📁 Category：Language Evolution 🔖 Level：Beginner

📘 Details & Usage

📖 Root Explanation

Initialism of 'Laugh Out Loud', popular in digital communication.

💡 Mnemonic

Imagine typing 'LOL' while you laugh – the letters look like a laughing face.

📖 Example

When my friend shared a hilarious video, I replied with LOL and a heart emoji. 🔊 When my friend shared a hilarious video, I replied with LOL and a heart emoji.

🔗 Collocations

type LOL – to write LOL in a message to express amusement

use LOL – to employ the acronym LOL to indicate laughter

say LOL – to pronounce the acronym aloud (though rare in speech)

🔄 Synonyms

ROFL (abbr.) – An acronym for 'Rolling On the Floor Laughing', indicating extreme amusement.

LMAO (abbr.) – An acronym for 'Laughing My Ass Off', expressing intense laughter.

haha (interj.) – An onomatopoeic representation of laughter, often used in casual text.

🌱 Derivatives

lolz (n.) – Plural form of lol, used as a noun meaning 'laughs' or 'amusing moments'.

lolling (v.) – Present participle of the verb 'lol', meaning 'laughing out loud'.

📖 Cultural Story

Originating in early internet chat rooms in the 1980s, 'LOL' became one of the first widely used internet acronyms, later added to the Oxford English Dictionary.