Definition
To make a loud, sharp, distinctive laugh or cry; the sound a hen makes when excited or after laying an egg.
Etymology
Imitative/onomatopoetic origin—the word mimics the sound itself. It's been used in English since at least the 15th century to describe both hen sounds and harsh human laughter. The similar sound and meaning across many Germanic languages suggests ancient roots.
Kelly Says
Cackle is one of those perfect onomatopoetic words—it actually sounds like what it means! The association with witches' cackling comes from the way the harsh, sharp sound seemed spooky to people, and literature amplified this into the stereotype of witches cackling menacingly.
Translations
ARالعربية
ضحك بصوت عال
dhaha-k bi-soot ʕa-al
CACatalà
riure a carcajadas
ree-ure a kar-ka-ja-das
CSČeština
smát se
s-mat se
DADansk
grine højt
gra-ne hoe-yt
DEDeutsch
kichern
ki-chern
ESEspañol
reírse a carcajadas
re-eer-se a kar-ka-ja-das
FAفارسی
خندیدن
khand-i-den
FISuomi
nauraa äänekkäästi
na-u-raa a-a-ne-kka-as-ti
FRFrançais
rire aux éclats
ree-re o ek-lat
IDBahasa Indonesia
tertawa keras
ter-tawa ke-ras
ITItaliano
ridere a crepapelle
ree-de-re a kre-pa-pel-le
JA日本語
くすくす笑う
ku-su-ku-su wa-u
KO한국어
꽥꽥 웃다
kyeok-kyeok ut-da
MSBahasa Melayu
tawa keras
ta-wa ke-ras
MYမြန်မာ
ကြင်ကြင်ရွှင်
kya-ngin-kya-ngin-shwin
NLNederlands
knijpen
kni-pen
NONorsk
latter høyt
lat-ter hoe-yt
PLPolski
chichotać
chi-cho-tat
PTPortuguês
rir-se a gargalhadas
ree-re-se a gar-ga-lha-das
RORomână
râde cu poftă
ra-de ku pof-ta
RUРусский
хихикать
hi-hi-kat
SVSvenska
skratta högljutt
skrat-ta hoe-ljutt
TAதமிழ்
கலகலவெறி
ka-la-ka-la-ve-ri
THไทย
หัวเราะดัง
hua-rao-dang
TLTL
tawa nang malakas
ta-wa nang ma-la-kas
TRTürkçe
kahkahlamak
kah-kah-la-mak
UKУкраїнська
сміятися
smi-ya-ty-sa
VITiếng Việt
cười ầm ĩ
khoe-i am-ee
ZUZU
khawulelwa
kha-wu-le-lwa