# cackle

> English word · Noun · IPA /ˈkækəl/ · frequency rank #58,577

## Definitions
1. The cry of a hen or goose, especially when laying an egg.
2. A laugh resembling the cry of a hen or goose.
3. Futile or excessively noisy talk.
4. A group of hyenas.

## Etymology
From Middle English caclen, cakelen, perhaps from Old English *caclian, *cacolian, from Proto-West Germanic *kakulōn, *kakilōn (“to cackle, gaggle, yelp, snarl”), perhaps of imitative origin. By surface analysis, cack + -le.
Compare Dutch kakelen (“to cackle”), German Low German kakeln (“to cackle”), German kakeln (“to blather”), Danish kagle (“to cackle”), Swedish kackla (“to cackle”). Compare also Old English cahhetan, ċeahhettan (“to laugh loudly; cackle”), German gackern (“to cackle”).

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/cackle