Used to describe an ongoing action or continuous state that was happening at a specific time in the past.
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Michel said — it became impossible to tell who was clowning whom.
From Washington Post ● Nov. 22, 2022
Ms. Bullock was clowning around when she turned the tables and asked her interviewer what she would like to have in five years that she doesn’t have now.
From New York Times ● Mar. 8, 2010
Here was this president in deep trouble, and he was clowning around, and it was kind of an out-of-body experience.
From Slate
Some said he was clowning too much, his tournament intensity dissipated by other interests.
From Time Magazine Archive
He had no idea that people thought he was clowning.
From "Slaughterhouse-Five" by Kurt Vonnegut
