fairground
Americannoun
noun
Etymology
Origin of fairground
Explanation
A fairground is an open outdoor area where a fair, circus, or some other exhibition sets up temporarily. Many county fairs are put on at the same fairground for a week or two each summer. Many funnel cakes are eaten there. Most fairgrounds have space for rides like Ferris wheels and bumper cars. Agricultural fairs might also have exhibit areas where visitors can see animals, handmade items, baked goods, giant watermelons, and other impressive produce. A traveling circus or carnival might also set up on fairground. The central section of a fairground is usually called a "midway."
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Fairground bosses said it was a "tragic accident".
From BBC • Aug. 24, 2025
And there is a 10-minute ballet for the spirited and vulnerable Louise, who, we learn, is snubbed by her peers and left heartbroken after a pas de deux with the Fairground Boy.
From New York Times • Aug. 17, 2018
The country’s roughly 2,500 markets attract more than 50 million visitors a year, according to the Federal Association of Fairground Showmen and Market Traders.
From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 26, 2015
About 1,000 Valley fire evacuees found refugee Monday night at the Napa County Fairground, where the Red Cross erected a tent city.
From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 14, 2015
The modern Provincial Fairground, lying well within the city limits of Calgary, was selected as the site of the performance.
From On the Edge of the Arctic or, An Aeroplane in Snowland by Sayler, H. L. (Harry Lincoln)
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
