antic
- Usually antics.
- a playful trick or prank; caper.
- a grotesque, fantastic, or ludicrous gesture, act, or posture.
- Archaic.
- an actor in a grotesque or ridiculous presentation.
- a buffoon; clown.
- Obsolete.
- a grotesque theatrical presentation; ridiculous interlude.
- a grotesque or fantastic sculptured figure, as a gargoyle.
- ludicrous; funny.
- fantastic; odd; grotesque: an antic disposition.
- Obsolete. to perform antics; caper.
Origin of antic
Examples from the Web for antic
Contemporary Examples of antic
Berlusconi repeated the antic in the afternoon in the lower house of Parliament, this time to jeers from fellow politicians.
It was antic, manic, magical, and mischievous—and thoroughly British.
The novel has the antic pace and madcap humor of a Hollywood-ready screenplay— Meet the Parents meets Garden State or something.
Historical Examples of antic
"I recall one antic, just before you left us—" He broke off to meditate.
I spoke to her, and she complained about the antic behaviour of the land.
The Cruise of the SnarkJack London
A sample, a fair sample, of the antic tricks we cut up on the beach of Manatomana.
The Red OneJack London
"I'm paid for my body, not for my voice; so let my body play the antic," she muttered, angrily.
Sylvia & MichaelCompton Mackenzie
The situation seemed, in antic irony, to be reversing itself.
Satan SandersonHallie Erminie Rives
antic
- archaic an actor in a ludicrous or grotesque part; clown; buffoon
- archaic fantastic; grotesque
Word Origin for antic
Word Origin and History for antic
1520s, "grotesque or comical gesture," from Italian antico "antique," from Latin antiquus "old" (see antique). Originally (like grotesque) a 16c. Italian word referring to the strange and fantastic representations on ancient murals unearthed around Rome (especially originally the Baths of Titus, rediscovered 16c.); later extended to "any bizarre thing or behavior," in which sense it first arrived in English. As an adjective in English from 1580s, "grotesque, bizarre."