Ways of

WAYS OF LAUGHING
laugh: express joy by making a sound, moving the face or body.
She splashed water on Nick and we all began laughing.
chuckle: laugh quietly, because you are thinking about something funny.
What are you chuckling about? I don't see anything funny.
giggle: laugh quietly and repeatedly because you are nervous or embarrassed.
She spilt the wine on the tablecloth and then giggled nervously at me.
give somebody the giggles: make somebody start giggling.
titter: laugh quietly, unkindly at something embarrassing.
After she ended the lecture, she heard someone tittering.
snigger (GB) / snicker (US): laugh quietly, unkindly at something that is not supposed to be funny.
When the teacher tripped on the steps, the boys sniggered.
roar / howl / shriek with laughter: laugh very loudly.
It was such a good comedy that when it finished, he was still roaring with laughter.
chortle: give a loud chuckle of pleasure or amusement.
When I told her the joke, she started to chortle with delight.
cackle: laugh loudly in a high voice.
When I told her the joke, she started cackling and couldn't stop!
guffaw: laugh noisily.
They guffawed at what their baby had done.
jeer: laugh at somebody or shout unkind things at them.
The president was jeered by a crowd of protesters.
burst into laughter: suddenly start laughing.
The class burst into laughter.
laugh your head off: (informal) laugh a lot and loudly.
He told us a joke after another, and we laughed our heads off!
smile: make one's mouth curve upwards, in order to be friendly or because one is happy.
As the boy left, he smiled at his mother and waved.
beam: smile very happily.
The mother looked at her son and beamed proudly.
grin: smile widely.
When she knew she had won the prize, she grinned broadly.
simper: smile in a silly and annoying way.
He simpered at the boys as he spoke.
smirk: smile in an unpleasant way, to show that you are pleased by somebody's bad luck.
The kids smirked when the teacher fell on the floor.
sneer: smile in an unkind way, showing no respect for somebody.
She sneered at his boyfriend's musical tastes.

WAYS OF SPEAKING
speak: make use of words in a normal voice.
May I speak to George?
talk: speak to give information, say things.
What are they talking about?
hesitate: be slow to speak (or act) because one is uncertain or unwilling to talk.
He hesitated before answering my question.
whisper: speak softly, without vibrating the vocal cords, privately or secretly.
She whispered the secret word in my ear.
hiss: say something in a loud whisper. (Snakes also hiss).
'Get out!' she hissed at me furiously.
mumble: speak unclearly, so that others can't hear.
He mumbled something at me which I didn't understand.
mutter: speak in a low voice, which is hard to hear.
She was muttering something to herself as she went out.
murmur: speak in a soft, quiet voice that is difficult to hear clearly.
The classmates murmured during the test.
hum: make a low continuous sound, when you take a long time deciding what to say.
She hummed at the beginning of the oral exam.
grunt: make short sounds or say a few words in a rough voice, when you don't want to talk. (Pigs
also grunt).
She grunted a few words and left the table.
stammer: speak with pauses and repeating the same sound or syllable, habitually or from fear or
excitement.
'P-p-please give me the p-p-pen,' he stammered.
stutter: stammer.
'P-p-please give me the p-p-pen,' he stuttered.
quaver: speak tremulously, because you are nervous or upset.
Her voice quavered for a moment but then she regained control.
lisp: speak with /th/ sounds instead of /s/ sounds.
You're very thilly, Thimon. (You're very silly, Simon.)
babble = gabble: talk foolishly, in a way difficult to understand.
Her fever made her babble without stopping.
ramble: talk continuously, in a confused way.
Stop rambling and get to the point, please!
slur: speak unclearly, without separating the words correctly.
He was so drunk that he slurred to the bartender for more.
chat: have a friendly informal conversation.
They chatted away in the corner.
chatter: talk quickly and at length about something unimportant.
Please stop chattering, I'm trying to listen to the TV!
gossip: talk about the affairs of other people.
She was gossiping about her neighbours all day.
call: speak in a loud clear voice, shout, cry.
They called for help.
shout: speak in a loud voice, in anger or to get attention.
He had to shout because the music was too loud.
whoop: shout loudly and happily.
The children whooped when we entered the fair.
cry (out): make a sharp noise, in pain or surprise.
She cried out in terror when the old man appeared suddenly.
yell: cry out loudly, in fear, pain or excitement.
She yelled in terror when she saw the dead cat.
scream: cry out very loudly on a high note, in fear, pain, anger or laughter.
The baby was screaming the whole day.
shriek: scream.
The men shrieked with laughter.
bellow: shout in a deep voice.
The captain bellowed orders at the crew.
squeak: speak in a high-pitched voice.
She squeaked out a few words nervously.
squeal: speak in a high-pitched voice, with longer and louder sounds than in a squeak.
'Let me go!' she squealed.
whine: complain in a sad, annoying voice about something.
'I don't want to go,' whined Peter.
chirp / chirrup (GB): speak in a happy high voice.
'All finished!' she chirped.
cheer: shout because of happiness.
The public cheered when the team appeared.
croak: speak with a deep hoarse voice.
She had such a terrible cold that she could only croak.
blurt out: say something suddenly and tactlessly.
She blurted out the bad news before I could stop her.
snap: say something quickly in an angry way.
'What do you want?' the waiter snapped.
splutter: talk quickly in short confused phrases, in anger or surprise.
'But... what... where... how could you?' she spluttered.
bark (out): say something quickly in a loud voice.
'What do you want?' the shop assistant barked.

WAYS OF SHINING
shine: give out light, be bright.
She cleaned the glasses until they shone.
glow: give out heat and/or light without flames.
The embers were still glowing.
beam: give out heat and light.
It's a fabulous day, the sun is beaming!
gleam: give out a soft and bright light.
She had polished the ornaments so that they gleamed.
blaze: give out a bright light.
The sun blazed down on the beach.
glisten: shine brightly (for polished or wet surfaces).
Her eyes were glistening with tears.
glitter: shine brightly with flashes of light.
Her necklace was glittering with diamonds.
sparkle: shine brightly with flashes of light.
The diamond sparkles in the light.
glint: shine brightly with small flashes of light.
The gold rims of his glasses glinted in the sun.
flash: give out a sudden bright light.
The lightning flashed across the sky.
glare: shine with a strong light in a way unpleasant to the eyes.
The sun glared out of the blue sky.
dazzle: shine so brightly that it stops you from seeing properly for a short time.
The driver might have been dazzled by the headlights of the oncoming car.
shimmer: give out a soft trembling light.
The moonlight was shimmering on the sea.
glimmer: give out a faint unsteady light.
We could see lights glimmering in the distance.
flicker: shine (or burn) unsteadily.
The lights flickered for a moment.
twinkle: shine unsteadily.
The stars were twinkling in the sky.

WAYS OF LOOKING
look: give attention to what one is seeing; turn the eyes and see in a certain direction.
Look at that cute baby!
see: use the power of sight.
See! Here she comes!
watch: look at some activity or event; keep one's eyes fixed on something.
The boys watched television all the afternoon.
gaze: look at something for a long time, in surprise or admiration.
She gazed at him in disbelief when he told her the news.
stare: look at something for a long time with the eyes wide open.
She was staring into space.
gawk = gawp: stare impolitely.
Many people gathered to gawp at the crashed car.
gape: look at something with one's mouth open.
She gaped at him in surprise.
glance: have a quick look at something.
She glanced at her watch.
scan: look quickly at something without careful reading.
He scanned the newspaper over breakfast.
glare: stare angrily or fiercely.
She didn't answered, but just glared silently at me.
peer: look very carefully, as if not able to see well.
He peered at me over his spectacles.
peep: look quickly and cautiously.
He was caught peeping through the keyhole.
observe: watch carefully.
The police observed the man entering the bank.
glimpse: have a passing view of something or someone. Usually used in the expression to catch a
glimpse of.
He could catch a glimpse of the president among the crowd.
spot: recognize someone suddenly among many others.
He was spotted by the police boarding a plane for Berlin.
behold: old use of the verb to see.
Behold the king!
view: (technical) look thouroughly; regard, consider.
That film hasn't been viewed by the censor yet.
sight: see for the first time.
The men in the ship finally sighted land.
leer: look in an unpleasant way, suggesting ill will or lust.
The man leered at the young girl.
blink: shut and open the eyes quickly.
How long can you stare without blinking?
wink: close one eye briefly, as a signal to somebody.
He winked at me to show that he was just joking.
frown: look in a worried or angry way, moving down the eyebrows together.
He read the telegram, frowning at its contents.
scowl: frown angrily.
She was very angry and scowled at him while she talked.
squint: look with eyes half shut or turned sideways, or through a narrow opening.
She squinted through the letter-box and saw an envelope.
peek: look quickly and secretively.
She found her brother peeking at her diary.
ogle: look or stare (at a woman) suggesting sexual interest.
Most women hate being ogled at.
goggle: look with the eyes wide open in surprise or shock. (old-fashioned)
People were goggling at her as if she were from another planet.
eyeball: look directly or closely.
Francis eyeballed a beautiful woman at the party.
take a gander at something: (informal) look at something.
cast an eye on/over something: look at something, examine something.
browse: look through the pages of a book or magazine; look at the goods in a shop without really
wanting to buy anything.
Sheila spent all the afternoon browsing the boutiques.
scrutinize: examine thoroughly and carefully.
John scrutinized the painting at the museum.


WAYS OF EATING
eat: have food.
She eats meat everyday.
tuck in: (informal) eat eagerly, with enjoyment.
When the guests arrived, Peter was already at the table tucking in.
lick: eat something by rubbing it with the tongue.
The boy was sitting in the garden licking an icecream.
have a snack: eat a small meal between the main meals.
She usually has a snack for lunch and then a larger meal for dinner.
stuff/gorge oneself: (informal) eat so much that one can't eat anything else.
He didn't want any meal because he had stuffed himself with bread and butter.
overeat: eat more than is necessary or healthy.
If you want to lose weight, you shouldn't overeat.
pig out: (informal) eat more than is necessary or healthy.
When she's depressed she always pigs out on chocolates.
make a pig of oneself: (informal) eat too much.
She made a pig of herself, she had the whole pizza for herself!
guzzle: (informal) eat or drink a lot, with greed.
You guzzled my dessert! What a pig!
bolt: eat quickly, because one is in a hurry.
He bolted down the burger in just a minute!
wolf down: (informal) eat quickly, because you are hungry or in a hurry.
He wolfed down his lunch but was still hungry.
gobble (up): eat quickly.
You shouldn't gobble your food.
scoff: (informal) eat quickly.
William scoffed all the cake before we could get any.
polish off: finish a meal quickly or easily.
I was so hungry I polished off all the food.
nibble: eat small amounts of food, by taking small bites.
You have to nibble sweet corn.
peck: eat sparingly, without enthusiasm, because you are not interested or not hungry.
Sally didn't like the fish. She only pecked at it.
chew: masticate, bite food several times before swallowing it.
The meat was so tough that it took a lot of chewing.
gnaw: keep biting something hard.
I watched my dog gnawing at the large bone.
chomp: eat, chew forcefully.
Francis chomped away at the meat.
munch: chew, eat noisily.
We all munched at the cookies as we watched the movie.
consume: eat or drink.
Are you going to consume all the beef?
sip: drink something slowly.
She was sitting at the table sipping her wine with pleasure.
suck (up): drink something with a straw.
Sally sucked up all the juice from the carton.
swig (back): drink quickly, gulp.
The thirsty man swigged back the water.
knock back: drink quickly.
Francis knocked back his beer in a flash!
quaff: drink a lot of something quickly, knock back.
Guests quaffed champagne while waiting for the bride to arrive.
gulp (down): swallow quickly.
Francis gulped down his beer quicker than anybody else.

WAYS OF CRYING
cry: produce tears from your eyes, usually because you are unhappy or hurt.
Please stop crying, Paul!
burst into tears: suddenly start crying.
When her boyfriend told her the truth, she burst into tears and ran out.
break down in tears: suddenly cry a lot, after trying not to cry.
After reading his letter, she broke down in tears.
be close to tears/on the verge of tears: be about to cry.
When she heard his voice on the phone, she was close to tears.
have tears in one's eyes: be about to cry.
When I said goodbye, I had tears in my eyes.
shed tears: cry.
I must admit I shed a few tears when the school closed.
be in tears: be crying.
The children were all in tears when our dog disappeared.
be in floods of tears: (UK) cry a lot.
The children were in floods of tears when our dog disappeared.
be moved to tears: be so upset that you start to cry.
A lot of people were moved to tears by his story.
weep: cry a lot for a long time.
The kids wept bitterly when it was time to leave.
cry one's eyes/heart out: be extremely sad and cry a lot.
After the robbery, she cried her heart out.
bawl: (a baby) cry very loudly.
We could hear the baby bawling upstairs.
sob: cry noisily, with sudden noisy breaths.
He began sobbing uncontrollably.
your eyes water: you start to cry, especially because there is a lot of smoke or because you have
been cutting up onions.
There was so much smoke in that room that my eyes were watering.