Snicker is from of imitative origin, mimicking the sound of a suppressed laugh; a variant of snigger, both 17th-18th-century formations. Morphologically, snicker is best read as imitative formation, yielding an English verb and noun shaped by both form history and later usage. In current English it functions as a verb and noun, with the sense "to laugh quietly and slyly, often disrespectfully". English derivatives include snickering. The result is an English verb and noun whose etymology preserves the older forms while supporting the word's specialized modern meaning.