Mardi Gras

[ mahr-dee grah ]

noun

1. the day before Lent, celebrated in some cities, such as New Orleans and Paris, as a day of revelry and merrymaking. Fat Tuesday ( def ), Shrove Tuesday ( def ).
2. a pre-Lenten carnival period climaxing on the Tuesday before Ash Wednesday.

Mardi Gras

/ ˈmɑːdɪ ˈɡrɑː /

noun

1. the festival of Shrove Tuesday, celebrated in some cities with great revelry

Mardi Gras

1. An annual festival held in France on the day before Ash Wednesday , the first day of Lent . Mardi Gras is French for “Fat Tuesday” — meaning it is the last opportunity to eat rich food before the fast of Lent begins. It is related to celebrations elsewhere, called “carnivals,” from the Latin words carne and vale , “meat” and “farewell,” meaning a farewell to meat before the abstinence of Lent.

Notes

New Orleans , Louisiana , is famous for its Mardi Gras celebration, as is Rio de Janeiro , Brazil .

Word History and Origins

Origin of Mardi Gras¹

First recorded in 1690–1700; from French: literally, “fat Tuesday”; mardi “Tuesday,” Old French marsdi, from Latin diēs Mārtis, Mārtis diēs “day of Mars” ( dismal ( def ), martial ( def ) ); gras “fat,” from Latin grassus “fat, thick”

Word History and Origins

Origin of Mardi Gras¹

French: fat Tuesday

Example Sentences

That is the sense of the Saturnalia, of Mardi Gras and of these moments of entertainment.

From The Daily Beast

When the host is in a festive mood, entering customers are given strings of Mardi Gras beads.

From The Daily Beast

Larry Bannock was the chief of a Mardi Gras Indian tribe in New Orleans.

From The Daily Beast

When he died, all the black Mardi Gras Indians came out and kissed the ground in front of his house.

From The Daily Beast

He started a group called the Hawkettes, which in 1954 recorded "Mardi Gras Mambo," a song still popular around New Orleans.

From The Daily Beast

The frolic had in it a Mardi Gras spirit quite foreign to the wonted quiet and dignity of the place.

From Project Gutenberg

What could have been better for the purpose than to have made them parade before us in historic mardi-gras?

From Project Gutenberg

Then another entertainment, a sort of mardi-gras maigre feast, was a champagne tea given for us at the Capitol by Mr. Blaine.

From Project Gutenberg

Public masking on the streets, on the day of Mardi Gras, is also an amusing feature of the carnival.

From Project Gutenberg

For months the advance orders for the coming Mardi Gras festivals have kept the work going day and night.

From Project Gutenberg