Punchinello
[puhn-chuh-nel-oh]
- a grotesque or absurd chief character in a puppet show of Italian origin: the prototype of Punch.
- any similarly grotesque or absurd person or thing.
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Origin of Punchinello
1660–70; < Italian (Naples dial.) polecenella character in the puppet show, diminutive of polecana turkey-cock chick < Late Latin pullicēnus, derivative of Latin pullus pullet
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Related Words
fooljestermimebuffooncomediancomicprankstercut-upmadcapharlequinwagribaldjokesterpunchjokermountebankwitzanyantichumoristExamples from the Web for punchinello
Historical Examples
A punchinello jarred against him with: “Pardonnez moi, pardie!”
The StrollersFrederic S. Isham
It is also from Naples that we have taken the Punchinello dance.
A Treatise on the Art of DancingGiovanni-Andrea Gallini
Punchinello asks Columbine who has been with her, and she replies, "Only the servant."
Stars of the OperaMabel Wagnalls
Punchinello traveled around the world in company with a circus.
The Green Forest Fairy BookLoretta Ellen Brady
Kings and queens had often hailed him thus, for Punchinello pleased all folk.
The Green Forest Fairy BookLoretta Ellen Brady
Punchinello
- a type of clown from Italian burlesque or puppet shows, the prototype of Punch
- (sometimes not capital) any grotesque or absurd character
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Word Origin
C17: from earlier Polichinello, from Italian (Neapolitan dialect) Polecenella, from Italian pulcino chicken, ultimately from Latin pullus young animal
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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Word Origin and History for punchinello
Punchinello
n.
see Punch.
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper