Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

laugh on the other side of one's face

Word Rarity Uncommon

Frequency: Zipf frequency 4.15 in modern English

Syllables: laugh- on the other side of one's -face
IPA

48

Scrabble Score

29

Letters

3

Syllables

15

Unique Chars

Meaning

verb

To experience discomfiture after displaying cockiness.

British usage; Informal; Intransitive verb

Example Sentences

"You'll be laughing on the other side of your face when the police find out you've been lying to them."
"Socialism? Ha! ha! ha! Where’s the money to come from? Ha! ha! ha!... Hitler will at any rate go down in history as the man who made the City of London laugh on the wrong side of its face. For the first time in their lives the comfortable were uncomfortable, the professional optimists had to admit that there was something wrong."

Usage

Inflected Forms

laughs on the other side of one's face (present, singular) laughing on the other side of one's face (participle, present) laughed on the other side of one's face (participle, past) laughed on the other side of one's face (past) laugh on the other side of one's mouth (alternative) laugh on the wrong side of one's face (alternative) laugh on the wrong side of one's mouth (alternative) laugh out of the other side of one's face (alternative) laugh out of the other side of one's mouth (alternative, US) laugh out of the wrong side of one's face (alternative) laugh out of the wrong side of one's mouth (alternative)

Phrases

have the last laugh he who laughs last laughs best speak out of both sides of one's mouth

Frequently Paired Words

have the last laugh he who laughs last laughs best talk speak out of both sides of one's mouth

Questions

What does laugh on the other side of one's face mean?: To experience discomfiture after displaying cockiness.

How to pronounce laugh on the other side of one's face

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