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



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Word of the Day

22 January 2025

MEGALITH

(noun) memorial consisting of a very large stone forming part of a prehistoric structure (especially in western Europe)


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Coffee Trivia

According to Guinness World Records, on 25 September 2016, the Birla Institute of Management Technology (India) in Uttar Pradesh, India, constructed the largest coffee cups pyramid consisting of 23,821 cups. They used paper takeaway coffee cups to build the pyramid.

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