grotesque

[ groh-tesk ]

/ groʊˈtɛsk /

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See synonyms for: grotesque / grotesques / grotesquely / grotesqueness on Thesaurus.com

adjective

odd or unnatural in shape, appearance, or character; fantastically ugly or absurd; bizarre.

fantastic in the shaping and combination of forms, as in decorative work combining incongruous human and animal figures with scrolls, foliage, etc.

noun

any grotesque object, design, person, or thing.

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OTHER WORDS FOR grotesque

1 distorted, deformed, weird, antic, wild.

See synonyms for grotesque on Thesaurus.com

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Origin of grotesque

First recorded in 1555–65; from French, from Italian grottesca (from pittura grottesca, opera grottesca “grotesque painting, decoration” such as was apparently found in excavated buildings), the feminine of grottesco “grotesque, uncouth,” derivative of grotta “cave.” See grotto, -esque

synonym study for grotesque

1. See bizarre.

OTHER WORDS FROM grotesque

gro·tesque·ly, adverbgro·tesque·ness, nounun·gro·tesque, adjective

Words nearby grotesque

Gros Ventre, grosz, grot, Grote, Grotesk, grotesque, grotesquery, Grotius, Groton, grotto, grotty

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use grotesque in a sentence

While that imagery is grotesque, such skin-related fretting is commonplace among QAnon followers.
QAnon? Far From Gone|Sean Culligan|June 25, 2021|Ozy
It would fit conventional wisdom to fault Nixon for the grotesque policy mistakes of the ongoing war on drugs.
The War on Drugs turns 50 today. It’s time to make peace.|David Farber|June 17, 2021|Washington Post
With films that look like works of art — some grotesque, others gentle — Szumowska made her English debut with the 2019 horror film, The Other Lamb, about life in a cult.
The Next Ava DuVernays|Sean Culligan|April 25, 2021|Ozy
In the opening of this novel, which is set in 1991, a grotesque personal tragedy has caused Anna to take to the road, abandoning her job, her husband and baby son.
In her novel ‘When the Stars Go Dark,’ Paula McLain draws on abuse cases, including her own|Maureen Corrigan|April 23, 2021|Washington Post

That dignity resides in the miserable daily onslaught of unexpected maladies and misfortunes, some of which boggle the mind in their grotesque improbability but all of which must be ignored instantly and totally.
The Nationals didn’t seek this pain, but they might be growing from it|Thomas M. Boswell|April 22, 2021|Washington Post
Grotesque profiteering aside, life release ceremonies can devastate the eco-system.
The Buddhist Business of Poaching Animals for Good Karma|Brendon Hong|December 28, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Why is the sight—or mere thought—of other adults having sex thought of as grotesque, bad, or forbidden in the year 2014?
Porn Stars Are People Too, Dammit: Lisa Ann’s Notre Dame Date and the Trolling of David Gregory|Aurora Snow|October 25, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Except in cases with the highest body count, or the most grotesque cruelty, white victims were the only ones that mattered.
The Myth of the Central Park Five|Edward Conlon|October 19, 2014|DAILY BEAST
At least Jake Gyllenhaal shaved off his grotesque face scarf this year.
Leo, the Beard Has to Go: When a Man’s Facial Hair Reaches Crisis Point|Tim Teeman|September 22, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The killing of aid worker David Haines is another grotesque spectacle by a group determined to outrage the West.
ISIS Murder of British Hostage Likely to Draw UK Deeper Into New War|Nico Hines|September 13, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The costumes were exceedingly grotesque and suggestive of the New rather than of the Old World.
Tobacco; Its History, Varieties, Culture, Manufacture and Commerce|E. R. Billings.
Above, great standard electric lamps shed their white glare upon the eddying throng casting a myriad of grotesque shadows.
The Joyous Adventures of Aristide Pujol|William J. Locke
The shadows lengthened and crept out like stealthy, grotesque monsters across the grass.
The Awakening and Selected Short Stories|Kate Chopin
The educated world repeated to itself these grotesque fallacies till it lost sight of plain and simple truths.
The Unsolved Riddle of Social Justice|Stephen Leacock
He found himself trying to frame the words, but they broke into incoherent prayers, still to the same grotesque tune.
Uncanny Tales|Various

British Dictionary definitions for grotesque

grotesque

/ (ɡrəʊˈtɛsk) /

adjective

strangely or fantastically distorted; bizarrea grotesque reflection in the mirror

of or characteristic of the grotesque in art

absurdly incongruous; in a ludicrous contexta grotesque turn of phrase

noun

a 16th-century decorative style in which parts of human, animal, and plant forms are distorted and mixed

a decorative device, as in painting or sculpture, in this style

printing the family of 19th-century sans serif display types

any grotesque person or thing

Derived forms of grotesque

grotesquely, adverbgrotesqueness, noun

Word Origin for grotesque

C16: from French, from Old Italian (pittura) grottesca cave painting, from grottesco of a cave, from grotta cave; see grotto

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

grotesque

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OTHER WORDS FOR grotesque

Origin of grotesque

synonym study for grotesque

OTHER WORDS FROM grotesque

Words nearby grotesque

Words related to grotesque

How to use grotesque in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for grotesque

Derived forms of grotesque

Word Origin for grotesque