Certified Pediatric Nurse (CPN)

At what age does a child typically begin to laugh?

1. 2 months

2. 4 months

3. 6 months

4. 8 months

The correct answer is: 4 months

A child typically begins to laugh around 4 months of age. At this developmental stage, infants start to engage more with their environment and the people around them. Laughter is a significant social milestone that indicates an infant's increasing ability to respond emotionally and engage in social interactions. By this age, they are able to express joy and amusement, which is often stimulated by playful interactions, such as tickling or funny faces made by caregivers. Before this age, while infants may show signs of happiness through smiles or cooing, the distinctive sound of laughter typically emerges around the four-month mark, highlighting a key developmental shift towards social engagement and emotional expression. At 2 months, infants are still mainly in the early stages of developing their social communication skills, while those at 6 and 8 months might laugh more frequently due to increased social interaction but are generally past the initial onset of laughter at 4 months.