circus

[sur-kuhs]

noun

plural

circuses 

1. a large public entertainment, typically presented in one or more very large tents or in an outdoor or indoor arena, featuring exhibitions of pageantry, feats of skill and daring, performing animals, etc., interspersed throughout with the slapstick antics of clowns.

2. a troupe of performers, especially a traveling troupe, that presents such entertainments, together with officials, other employees, and the company's performing animals, traveling wagons, tents, cages, and equipment.

3. anything resembling such public entertainments, as an event or activity that is wildly active, disordered, sensational, etc..

   That whole trial was a circus.

4. a circular arena surrounded by tiers of seats, in which public entertainments are held; arena.

5. (in ancient Rome)

   1. a large, usually oblong or oval, roofless enclosure, surrounded by tiers of seats rising one above another, for chariot races, public games, etc.

   2. an entertainment given in this Roman arena, as a chariot race or public game.

      The Caesars appeased the public with bread and circuses.

6. anything resembling the Roman circus, or arena, as a natural amphitheater or a circular range of houses.

7. flying circus.

8. British.,  an open circle, square, or plaza where several streets converge.

   Piccadilly Circus.

9. Obsolete.,  a circlet or ring.

circus

/ ˈsɜːkəs /

noun

1. a travelling company of entertainers such as acrobats, clowns, trapeze artistes, and trained animals

2. a public performance given by such a company

3. an oval or circular arena, usually tented and surrounded by tiers of seats, in which such a performance is held

4. a travelling group of professional sportsmen

   a cricket circus

5. 1. an open-air stadium, usually oval or oblong, for chariot races or public games

   2. the games themselves

6. 1. an open place, usually circular, in a town, where several streets converge

   2. ( capital when part of a name )

      Piccadilly Circus

7. informal,  noisy or rowdy behaviour

8. informal,  a person or group of people whose behaviour is wild, disorganized, or (esp unintentionally) comic

Other Word Forms

• circusy adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of circus¹

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English, from Latin: “circular region of the sky, oval space in which games were held,” akin to (or borrowed from) Greek kírkos “ring, circle”

Word History and Origins

Origin of circus¹

C16: from Latin, from Greek kirkos ring

Idioms and Phrases

see three-ring circus.

Example Sentences

They don’t have any excitement in their own lives, so they put him on the same pedestal as the circus performers in “Freaks” or Gwynplaine in “The Man Who Laughs.”

Read more on Salon

The queens cut their teeth performing in bars, burlesque theaters, punk venues and even a circus, where they learned to entertain by pulling together subversive and mainstream references.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Even the Romans knew the bread they supplied with the circuses had to be affordable.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

And yet, as big of a circus atmosphere that it became, the focus never changed.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

You’ll spy a small train coaster, a mini Ferris wheel and a circus area, complete with a large statue of a clown that would tower over guests.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• festival 
• spectacle