paparazzo

[pah-puh-raht-soh; Italian pah-pah-raht-tsaw]

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noun, plural pa·pa·raz·zi [pah-puh-raht-see; Italian pah-pah-raht-tsee] /ˌpɑ pəˈrɑt si; Italian ˌpɑ pɑˈrɑt tsi/.

a freelance photographer, especially one who takes candid pictures of celebrities for publication.

Origin of paparazzo

1965–70; < Italian, from the surname of such a photographer in Federico Fellini's La dolce vita (1959), after the name of a hotelkeeper in George Gissing's By the Ionian Sea (1901), read by Fellini in It translation at the time of the movie's producton

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

Related Words for paparazzi

paparazzo, shutterbug, cameraperson

Examples from the Web for paparazzi

Contemporary Examples of paparazzi

Paparazzi photos of Mrs. Knowles-Carter sporting the Bettie Page look were released.
The Outrage Over Beyonce’s Bettie Page Bangs: Why the Media Must Stop Objectifying Women
Phoebe Robinson
October 15, 2014
Mrs. Clooney has been followed around Athens during a three-day visit by a horde of paparazzi that number into the hundreds.
Can Amal Clooney Save Greece’s Antiquities?
Nico Hines
October 15, 2014
A low point came when she was photographed by paparazzi crying in a Soho street after the break-up.
Inside the Harry and Cressie Make Up: Britain’s Favorite Royal Is In Love
Tom Sykes
October 3, 2014
Lady Gaga, “Paparazzi” Did you know Alexander Skarsgard was in this video?
Andrew Garfield in ‘We Exist’ and More Celebrities in Music Videos
Marina Watts
May 18, 2014
She peaked with a few good songs, but now is riding the wave of promotions, brands, and paparazzi.
The Improbable Rise of Rita Ora: A Guide for the Modern-Day Celebrity
Emma Gannon
May 5, 2014

British Dictionary definitions for paparazzi

paparazzo

noun plural -razzi (-ˈrætsiː)

a freelance photographer who specializes in candid camera shots of famous people and often invades their privacy to obtain such photographs

Word Origin for paparazzo

C20: from Italian

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 paparazzi

1961, from Italian Paparazzo (plural paparazzi) surname of the freelance photographer in Federico Fellini's 1959 film "La Dolce Vita." The surname itself is of no special significance; it is said to be a common one in Calabria, and Fellini is said to have borrowed it from a travel book, "By the Ionian Sea," in which occurs the name of hotel owner Coriolano Paparazzo.

paparazzo

see paparazzi.