minstrel show

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noun

a once popular type of stage show featuring comic dialogue, song, and dance in highly conventionalized patterns, performed by a troupe of actors traditionally comprising two end men, a chorus in blackface, and an interlocutor. Developed in the U.S. in the 19th century, this entertainment portrayed negative racial stereotypes and declined in popularity in the 20th century.

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Origin of minstrel show

An Americanism dating back to 1865–70

Words nearby minstrel show

Minotaur, minoxidil, Minsk, minster, minstrel, minstrel show, minstrelsy, mint, mintage, mint bush, mint condition, in

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

How to use minstrel show in a sentence

It’s always a lot of pressure to return to the minstrel show, man.
Let’s Talk About Wynton Marsalis|Eugene Robinson|May 18, 2021|Ozy
Policemen on the show joke about prison riots, bomb threats, and the shooting of unarmed civilians.
'Babylon' Review: The Dumb Lives of Trigger-Happy Cops|Melissa Leon|January 9, 2015|DAILY BEAST
As soon as this attack [happened], Paris citizens came together to show were are not afraid, we are Charlie Hebdo.
France Kills Charlie Hebdo Murderers|Nico Hines|January 9, 2015|DAILY BEAST
And they might not have to wait that long to show their political heft.
Asian-Americans Are The New Florida|Tim Mak|January 8, 2015|DAILY BEAST

Not actual CIA agents, but U.S. government personnel who have worked very closely with the CIA, and who are fans of the show.
‘Archer’ Creator Adam Reed Spills Season 6 Secrets, From Surreal Plotlines to Life Post-ISIS|Marlow Stern|January 8, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Earlier this week, Huckabee ended his Fox News talk show so he could spend time mulling another bid for the Republican nomination.
Huckabee 2016: Bend Over and Take It Like a Prisoner!|Olivia Nuzzi|January 8, 2015|DAILY BEAST
None other would dare to show herself unveiled to a stranger, and a white man at that.
The Red Year|Louis Tracy
I shall show how it is possible thus to prolong life to the term set by God.
The Mediaeval Mind (Volume II of II)|Henry Osborn Taylor
Not only do children thus of themselves extend the scope of our commands, they show a disposition to make rules for themselves.
Children's Ways|James Sully
He called upon the Order to show their title-deeds, but was met with a contemptuous refusal.
The Philippine Islands|John Foreman
If any one has lost his temper, as well as his money, he takes good care not to show it; to do so here would be indeed bad form.
The Pit Town Coronet, Volume I (of 3)|Charles James Wills

British Dictionary definitions for minstrel show

minstrel show

noun

a theatrical entertainment consisting of songs, dances, comic turns, etc, performed by a troupe of actors wearing black face make-up

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