clown

American  

[kloun] / klaʊn /

noun

1. 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.

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

3. a prankster; a practical joker.

   Synonyms:

   churl, lout

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

   Synonyms:

   bumpkin

5. a peasant; rustic.

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verb (used without object)

1. to act like a clown.

clown British  

/ klaʊn /

noun

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

2. any performer who elicits an amused response

3. someone who plays jokes or tricks

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

5. a coarse clumsy rude person; boor

6. archaic a countryman or rustic

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verb

1. to perform as a clown

2. to play jokes or tricks

3. to act foolishly

Other Word Forms

• clownery noun
• clownish adjective
• clownishly adverb
• clownishness noun

Etymology

Origin of clown

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

Example Sentences

The food fight that explodes in the play’s third movement is conducted with comestibles so rubbery they might be part of a clown show.

From Los Angeles Times

“Strangers clowned us,” former Ambassadors player Victoria Henson told me the other day.

From The Wall Street Journal

He played the clown wonderfully, and people laughed.

From Literature

They hadn’t gone far when Wolf began to run up and clown the bank, mewing.

From Literature

War is not for clowns and fake tough guys.

From Salon

Related Words

• buffoon
• comedian
• comic
• fool
• jester
• mime
• prankster