titter

1 of 2

verb

tit·ter ˈti-tər

tittered; tittering; titters

Synonyms of titter

intransitive verb

: to laugh in a nervous, affected, or partly suppressed manner : giggle, snicker

titter

2 of 2

noun

plural titters

: a quiet or nervous laugh : an act or instance of tittering

There were a few titters from the students.

Most importantly, I can see the candidates' body language when they're off-camera and hear the murmurs and titters in the crowd.—Dana Milbank

Examples of titter in a Sentence

Verb Some people in the audience tittered nervously during an awkward pause in the speech. even as students in the sex ed class continued to titter, the lecturer plowed ahead Noun a titter swept through the crowd at his verbal slip

Recent Examples on the Web

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Verb

Jenna was the only one upset to hear the news that had all the other girls tittering. —Brian Moylan, Vulture, 12 Nov. 2024

As a beaming Turner greeted a cast of hopefuls in the premiere episode, the senior center crowd tittered at attention-getting strategies like riding up to the Bachelor Mansion on a motorcycle, groaning at the franchise’s wink-wink, nudge-nudge innuendo. —Julia Jacobs, New York Times, 5 Oct. 2023 The crowd began to titter as Newman shaded his eyes, pretending to look into the stands for a challenger. —Michael Hiltzik, Los Angeles Times, 22 June 2023 Little Madilyn, tittering, looks up at me and stuffs both hands into her mouth to stop from whooping. —E. Jean Carroll, Outside Online, 15 Nov. 2018 As a consumer product for those who titter, this production appears to check all the boxes. —Ed Stockly, Los Angeles Times, 21 Oct. 2021 All hail sound designer Ben Burtt: The tittering probe droid, the braying AT-AT laserspray. —Darren Franich, EW.com, 30 Oct. 2019 That didn’t seem to faze the opening-night audience, which tittered at each scandalous line. —Los Angeles Times, 27 Sep. 2019 The pass arrived just in time, and the crowd tittered in excitement. —Jonas Shaffer, baltimoresun.com, 3 Aug. 2019

Noun

The exchange gets nothing more than a couple awkward titters, and home viewers can practically see the audience enthusiasm evaporating in the 8H studio. —Jesse David Fox, Vulture, 14 Feb. 2025 The question got titters from the audience, and not because finding the remainder in a division problem is so hilarious (the answer, BTW, is two, with 16 beads on each bracelet). —Elizabeth Logan, Glamour, 29 Jan. 2025 Trump rallies have over-the-top party energy; Trump nicknames draw titters from the crowd. —Kate Cohen, Washington Post, 25 July 2024 Santiago, dressed as the Grim Reaper, toys with her for a while, giving her a bit of hope before killing her in front of an audience that nervously titters before bursting into applause. —Rebecca Alter, Vulture, 19 May 2024 His every appearance is met with titters of laughter, all amply deserved. —Maureen Lee Lenker, EW.com, 30 June 2023 A bit of public masturbation by a gravesite, rendered in dim blue light as Turturro faces away from the audience, with a splatter of ejaculate rendered through projections (by Alex Basco Koch), gets a few predictable titters from the audience but never feels as edgy as it’s presumably meant to. —Vulture, 2 Nov. 2023 There are some titters from his family, more deflated than amused. —Michael Luo, The New Yorker, 23 Oct. 2023 There’s much comedy in the asking (menopausal feminists delivering deliberately unfunny monologues at open-mic night at the local comedy club prompts an uneasy titter in both the audience and the reader), but the novel makes clear that the answers aren’t straightforward. —Claire Messud, Harper's Magazine, 22 June 2021

Word History

Etymology

Verb

imitative

First Known Use

Verb

circa 1625, in the meaning defined above

Noun

1711, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler

The first known use of titter was circa 1625

See more words from the same year

Browse Nearby Words

titted

titter

titterel

See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

Style

“Titter.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/titter. Accessed 23 Mar. 2025.

Copy Citation

Kids Definition

titter

verb

tit·ter ˈtit-ər

: to laugh in a nervous manner or while trying to hold the laugh back

titter noun

titter

verb

noun

Synonyms

Examples of titter in a Sentence

Word History

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

Kids Definition

More from Merriam-Webster on titter

More from Merriam-Webster

Can you solve 4 words at once?

Can you solve 4 words at once?

Word of the Day

de rigueur

Popular in Grammar & Usage

The Difference Between 'i.e.' and 'e.g.'

How to Use Em Dashes (—), En Dashes (–) , and Hyphens (-)

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?

More Commonly Misspelled Words

Popular in Wordplay

What do SCOTUS, POTUS, and FLOTUS mean?

Flower Etymologies For Your Spring Garden

More Words with Remarkable Origins

Terroir, Oenophile, & Magnum: Ten Words About Wine

8 Words for Lesser-Known Musical Instruments

Popular Features

The Difference Between 'i.e.' and 'e.g.'

What do SCOTUS, POTUS, and FLOTUS mean?

Flower Etymologies For Your Spring Garden

Games & Quizzes

titter

verb

noun

Synonyms

Examples of titter in a Sentence

Word History

Rhymes for titter

Browse Nearby Words

Articles Related to titter

Cite this Entry

Share

Kids Definition

More from Merriam-Webster on titter

More from Merriam-Webster

Can you solve 4 words at once?

Can you solve 4 words at once?

Word of the Day

de rigueur

Popular in Grammar & Usage

The Difference Between 'i.e.' and 'e.g.'

How to Use Em Dashes (—), En Dashes (–) , and Hyphens (-)

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?

More Commonly Misspelled Words

Popular in Wordplay

What do SCOTUS, POTUS, and FLOTUS mean?

Flower Etymologies For Your Spring Garden

More Words with Remarkable Origins

Terroir, Oenophile, & Magnum: Ten Words About Wine

8 Words for Lesser-Known Musical Instruments

Popular Features

The Difference Between 'i.e.' and 'e.g.'

What do SCOTUS, POTUS, and FLOTUS mean?

Flower Etymologies For Your Spring Garden

Games & Quizzes