Pierrot
Americannoun
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Pierrots
plural
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a male character in certain French pantomime, having a whitened face and wearing a loose, white, fancy costume.
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(lowercase) an actor, masquerader, or buffoon so made up.
noun
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a male character from French pantomime with a whitened face, white costume, and pointed hat
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(usually not capital) a clown or masquerader so made up
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of Pierrot
1735–45; < French, diminutive of Pierre Peter
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.
See Examples For:
Patricia Pierrot said she had stopped taking the bus entirely, calling it "too stifling".
From Barron's ● Jun. 19, 2026
From ethereal white lace boho dresses to a stark black and white Pierrot bustier creation, each piece was a culmination of her vision of timeless femininity, echoing the radiant essence of nature in every stitch.
From Seattle Times ● Sep. 28, 2023
The code was harder to crack than Ms. Pierrot expected.
From NewsForKids.net ● Nov. 29, 2022
He also helped bury Karina and Belmondo on a beach at Porquerolles Island while shooting 1965's Pierrot Le Fou.
From BBC ● Sep. 13, 2022
Like his brother, Pierrot had the knack of depriving his lines of any sense.
From "Atonement" by Ian McEwan
AFP attended a recent rehearsal at the Theatre des Trois Pierrots in Saint-Cloud, west of Paris.
From Barron's ● May 4, 2026
Pierrots, sailors, harlequins and peasants follow in the procession, small bells sewn to their costumes ringing as local brass bands play the streets.
From Reuters ● Feb. 21, 2023
Pierrots pop up where you might least expect them.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 25, 2020
And for decades, Kate Moss has been imprinted on nearly everyone’s mental screen saver as a languorously gaunt, plump-lipped houri with an expression of cryptic jadedness that recalls one of those umber-eyed Parisian Pierrots.
From New York Times ● Sep. 28, 2012
Pierrots, with frozen hands, were blowing blue noses.
From Idle Ideas in 1905 by Jerome K. (Jerome Klapka) Jerome
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.
