In the 18th century, the Swedish government made coffee and its paraphernalia (including cups and dishes) illegal for its supposed ties to rebellious sentiment.
CLOWN
clown, buffoon, goof, goofball, merry andrew
(noun) a person who amuses others by ridiculous behavior
clown, buffoon
(noun) a rude or vulgar fool
clown, clown around, antic
(verb) act as or like a clown
Source: WordNet® 3.1
Etymology
Noun
clown (plural clowns)
A slapstick performance artist often associated with a circus and usually characterized by bright, oversized clothing, a red nose, face paint, and a brightly colored wig.
A person who acts in a silly fashion.
A stupid person.
(obsolete) A man of coarse nature and manners; an awkward fellow; an illbred person; a boor.
(obsolete) One who works upon the soil; a rustic; a churl; a yokel.
Synonyms
• (person who acts in a silly fashion): buffoon, fool
Verb
clown (third-person singular simple present clowns, present participle clowning, simple past and past participle clowned)
(intransitive) To act in a silly or playful fashion.
(transitive, African-American Vernacular) To ridicule.
Source: Wiktionary
Clown, n. Etym: [Cf. Icel. klunni a clumsy, boorish fellow, North Fries. kl clown, dial. Sw. klunn log, Dan. klunt log block, and E. clump, n.]
1. A man of coarse nature and manners; an awkward fellow; an illbred person; a boor. Sir P. Sidney.
2. One who works upon the soil; a rustic; a churl. The clown, the child of nature, without guile. Cowper.
3. The fool or buffoon in a play, circus, etc. The clown shall make those laugh whose lungs are tickle o'the sere. Shak.
Clown, v. i.
Definition: To act as a clown; -- with it [Obs.] Beclowns it properly indeed. B. Jonson.
Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition
Recent Word Finds
Word of the Day
22 February 2025
ANALYSIS
(noun) the use of closed-class words instead of inflections: e.g., ‘the father of the bride’ instead of ‘the bride’s father’
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