noun
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short for carnival
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a person who works in a carnival
verb
Etymology
Origin of carny
First recorded in 1930–35; carn(ival) + -y 2
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.
Director “Baz Luhrmann wanted the carny world to provide an enticing location for Parker to cast his spell.”
From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 27, 2023
I’m a carny, and I’ve left the tent.
From Seattle Times • Feb. 20, 2023
Did the old carny barker play out a shattering real-life version of “Nightmare Alley,” his favorite movie, where he turned the most successful solo recording artist of all time into the geek?
From New York Times • May 21, 2022
"We have been watched, scrutinized and judged. But as they watched us swim around, we have perfected our stroke! We were like carny people."
From Fox News • Jan. 1, 2022
Look, professor," he said, "I've got a job, right here in the carny.
From Charley de Milo by Janifer, Laurence M.
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.
