DEFINITIONS

carnival

[ kahr-nuh-vuhl ]
/ ˈkɑr nə vəl /
SEE SYNONYMS FOR carnival ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a traveling amusement show, having sideshows, rides, etc.
any merrymaking, revelry, or festival, as a program of sports or entertainment: a winter carnival.
the season immediately preceding Lent, often observed with merrymaking; Shrovetide.

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Words related to carnival

fair, circus, revelry, gala, carousal, jamboree, festival, rout, fete, exposition, frolic, heyday, bacchanal, merrymaking, masquerade, fiesta, saturnalia, spree, conviviality, orgy

Words nearby carnival

carnification, carnify, carniola, carnitas, carnitine, carnival, carnival glass, carnivalesque, carnivora, carnivore, carnivorous

Origin of carnival

1540–50; < Italian carnevale, Old Italian carnelevare taking meat away, equivalent to carne flesh (< Latin carnem, accusative of caro) + levare < Latin levāre to lift

OTHER WORDS FROM carnival

car·ni·val·esque, car·ni·val·like, adjectivepre·car·ni·val, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for carnival

British Dictionary definitions for carnival

carnival
/ (ˈkɑːnɪvəl) /

noun

  1. a festive occasion or period marked by merrymaking, processions, etc: esp in some Roman Catholic countries, the period just before Lent
  2. (as modifier)a carnival atmosphere
a travelling fair having merry-go-rounds, etc
a show or display arranged as an amusement
Australian a sports meeting

Word Origin for carnival

C16: from Italian carnevale, from Old Italian carnelevare a removing of meat (referring to the Lenten fast)
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012