kink.
To laugh loudly.
Meaning & usage
To laugh loudly.
To gasp for breath as in a severe fit of coughing.
Where this word comes from
From Middle English kinken, kynken, from Old English *cincian (attested in cincung), from Proto-West Germanic *kinkōn, from Proto-Germanic *kinkōną (“to laugh”), from Proto-Indo-European *gang- (“to mock, jeer, deride”), related to Old English canc (“jeering, scorn, derision”). Cognate with Dutch kinken (“to kink, cough”).
A convulsive fit of coughing or laughter; a sonorous indraft of breath; a whoop; a gasp of breath caused by laughing, coughing, or crying.
Where this word comes from
From Middle English kinken, kynken, from Old English *cincian (attested in cincung), from Proto-West Germanic *kinkōn, from Proto-Germanic *kinkōną (“to laugh”), from Proto-Indo-European *gang- (“to mock, jeer, deride”), related to Old English canc (“jeering, scorn, derision”). Cognate with Dutch kinken (“to kink, cough”).
A tight curl, twist, or bend in a length of thin material, hair etc.
We couldn't get enough water to put out the fire because of a kink in the hose.
A difficulty or flaw that is likely to impede operation, as in a plan or system.
They had planned to open another shop downtown, but their plan had a few kinks.
An unreasonable notion; a crotchet; a whim; a caprice.
Peculiarity or deviation in sexual behaviour or taste.
A person with peculiar sexual tastes.
Any sexual preference outside normal or expected norms.
A positive 1-soliton solution to the sine-Gordon equation.
Where this word comes from
From Dutch kink (“a twist or curl in a rope”), from Proto-Germanic *kenk-, *keng- (“to bend, turn”), from Proto-Indo-European *gengʰ- (“to turn, wind, braid, weave”). Compare Saterland Frisian Kink (“twist or entanglement in a rope or cord”), Middle Low German kinke (“spiral screw, coil”), Old Norse kikna (“to bend backwards, sink at the knee”), Icelandic kengur (“a bend or bight; a metal crook”). Probably related to kick.
To form a kink or twist.
To be formed into a kink or twist.
Where this word comes from
From Dutch kink (“a twist or curl in a rope”), from Proto-Germanic *kenk-, *keng- (“to bend, turn”), from Proto-Indo-European *gengʰ- (“to turn, wind, braid, weave”). Compare Saterland Frisian Kink (“twist or entanglement in a rope or cord”), Middle Low German kinke (“spiral screw, coil”), Old Norse kikna (“to bend backwards, sink at the knee”), Icelandic kengur (“a bend or bight; a metal crook”). Probably related to kick.
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Definitions, grammatical labels, IPA, etymology and examples: Wiktionary contributors, extracted by Kaikki / Wiktextract. Adapted under CC BY-SA 4.0. Selected fields and authored examples are shown; third-party quotations and audio are omitted. See contributor history.
Last enriched 2026-09-10. Definitions are in English. Romanizations are shown when supplied by the source; syllable estimates are omitted for unsupported scripts.