clown

[kloun]

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noun

a comic performer, as in a circus, theatrical production, or the like, who wears an outlandish costume and makeup and entertains by pantomiming common situations or actions in exaggerated or ridiculous fashion, by juggling or tumbling, etc.

a person who acts like a clown; comedian; joker; buffoon; jester.

a prankster; a practical joker.

Slang. a coarse, ill-bred person; a boor.

a peasant; rustic.

verb (used without object)

to act like a clown.

Origin of clown

1555–65; earlier cloyne, clowne, perhaps akin to Old Norse klunni boor, Danish dialect klunds, Swedish dialect klunn log

Related formsclown·ish, adjectiveclown·ish·ly, adverbclown·ish·ness, noun

Synonyms for clown

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR clown ON THESAURUS.COM

3. lout, churl. 4. bumpkin.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for clown

fool, jester, mime, buffoon, comedian, comic, prankster, lout, cut-up, madcap, harlequin, wag, ribald, jokester, punch, joker, mountebank, wit, zany, antic

Examples from the Web for clown

Contemporary Examples of clown

So many families come that Vargas has arranged for a clown to entertain the kids.
America’s Fastest Growing Death Holiday Is From Mexico
Michael Schulson
November 1, 2014
An 18-year-old man dressed as a clown mugged a pedestrian, striking him 30 times in the back and neck with an iron bar.
French Freak-Out Over Creepy Clowns
Tracy McNicoll
October 31, 2014
There have more recent reports of Wasco Clown inspired sightings from as far away as Fishers, Indiana.
Nightmares in Face Paint: Why We’ll Always Be Afraid of Clowns
Oliver Jones
October 18, 2014
The subtext of the clown is that life is a joke and can be snatched away at any moment.
Nightmares in Face Paint: Why We’ll Always Be Afraid of Clowns
Oliver Jones
October 18, 2014
There is something about a clown that stays with people: the bright colors, their tendency to be demonstrative.
Nightmares in Face Paint: Why We’ll Always Be Afraid of Clowns
Oliver Jones
October 18, 2014

Historical Examples of clown

Kemp, the clown of his company, knew her, and dedicated a book to her rather familiarly.
The Man Shakespeare
Frank Harris
On the front seat is a peasant, laughing at the antics of the clown.
The American Mind
Bliss Perry
Here is a vain person, and Malvolio is imprisoned and twitted by a clown.
The American Mind
Bliss Perry
A clown seized Philemon's hand, and hurried him into the ring.
Harper's Young People, July 13, 1880
Various
They will think I am a clown out for a holiday, but I can't help that.
Punch or the London Charivari, Vol. 93, September 3, 1887
Various

British Dictionary definitions for clown

clown

noun

a comic entertainer, usually grotesquely costumed and made up, appearing in the circus

any performer who elicits an amused response

someone who plays jokes or tricks

a person who acts in a comic or buffoon-like manner

a coarse clumsy rude person; boor

archaic a countryman or rustic

verb (intr)

to perform as a clown

to play jokes or tricks

to act foolishly

Derived Formsclownery, nounclownish, adjectiveclownishly, adverbclownishness, noun

Word Origin for clown

C16: perhaps of Low German origin; compare Frisian klönne, Icelandic klunni clumsy fellow

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

Word Origin and History for clown

1560s, clowne, also cloyne, "rustic, boor, peasant," origin uncertain. Perhaps from Scandinavian dialect (cf. Icelandic klunni "clumsy, boorish fellow;" Swedish kluns "a hard knob; a clumsy fellow," Danish klunt "log, block"), or akin to North Frisian klönne "clumsy person." Or, less likely, from Latin colonus "colonist, farmer," though awareness of this word might have influenced the sense development in English.

Meaning "professional fool, professional or habitual jester" is c.1600. "The pantomime clown represents a blend of the Shakes[pearean] rustic with one of the stock types of the It. comedy" [Weekley]. Meaning "contemptible person" is from 1920s. Fem. form clowness attested from 1801.

c.1600, "to play the clown onstage," from clown (n.); colloquial sense of "to behave inappropriately" (e.g. clown around, 1932) attested by 1928, perhaps from theatrical slang sense of "play a (non-comical) part farcically or comically" (1891). Related: Clowned; clowning.