He laughs best who laughs last

He laughs best who laughs last.

Can anyone tell me what the above sentence means?

From the structure of the sentence, the clause 'who laughs last' is the object of the verb 'laugh' and 'best' is the adverb modifying the verb 'laugh'. So my guess is: The person (He) laughs at anyone who is the final guy who laughs (at the joke). But I can't figure out how the adverb 'best' fits in, in terms of meaning.

Solution 1:

"The person (He) laughs at anyone who is the final guy who laughs (at the joke)"

This is not the meaning or how it is used.

It is all about fate and revenge.

Imagine that you have a very bad landlord and he evicts you and your family from the house. Also, he laughs as he does this. However, when he walks into the house, the house collapses and injures him badly - you laugh. But your laughter is better than his earlier laughter. You have laughed last and you have laughed best.

Solution 2:

Like many proverbs and old sayings, this has an unusual syntax.

A more normal order would be

He who laughs last laughs best

or, more clearly

The one who laughs last [is the one who] laughs best.

I know it in the form "He who laughs last laughs longest". The same idea is present in the idiom "getting the last laugh".