paparazzi

[pah-puh-raht-see, pah-pah-raht-tsee]

plural noun

singular

paparazzo 

1. freelance photographers, especially those who take candid pictures of celebrities for publication.

   To evade the paparazzi, the actress sent her car to the front entrance and snuck in the back on foot.

   I felt like a paparazzo as I hung around waiting to catch a glimpse of the singer.

Word History and Origins

Origin of paparazzi¹

First recorded in 1965–70; from Italian, from the surname of such a photographer in Federico Fellini's ( def. ) La dolce vita (1959), of disputed origin

Example Sentences

For “Don’t You Worry Baby” he was joined by a female dancer on roller skates; for “Noid,” a couple of guys with cameras helped him act out his unhappy thoughts on paparazzi.

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And so every time you go, “There was a paparazzi on my street when Sam was born ...” You’re like, “Oh, it’s nothing compared to what they went through.”

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"There was around 40 paparazzi outside my house every day," says Katona, and they weren't looking for flattering portraits.

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The couple was spotted by paparazzi holding hands in Paris last weekend as they left the Crazy Horse cabaret, where they had been celebrating Perry's 41st birthday.

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A Palace spokesperson described the pictures as "long-lens paparazzi photographs" and said the accompanying article was "grossly intrusive".

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