Keystone comedy
Americannoun
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a short film of the silent era, often featuring the Keystone Kops.
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Slang. any situation or incident characterized by farcical bungling, misunderstandings, etc.
Etymology
Origin of Keystone comedy
First recorded in 1910–15
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.
Readers who never saw a Keystone comedy will have a hard time restraining their whoops as Gene Fowler unreels this fantastic slapstick-story of Hollywood success.
From Time Magazine Archive
One fuzz-cheeked soldier who found a rust-covered fowling piece dashed topside, tripped, fell in the river in the best Keystone comedy manner.
From Time Magazine Archive
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.
