waxworks

American  

[waks-wurks] / ˈwæksˌwɜrks /

noun

(usually used with a singular verb)

• waxworks
  plural

1. an exhibition of or a museum for displaying wax figures, ornaments, etc.

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• waxworks
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of waxworks

First recorded in 1690–1700; wax ¹ + work ( def. ) + -s ³ ( def. )

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

waxworks

At Barnum’s American Museum in New York City, visitors could see America’s first aquarium, a menagerie of exotic animals, performances by magicians and ventriloquists, and waxworks.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 25, 2026

When you walk through a crowd of strangers it’s next door to impossible not to imagine that they’re all waxworks, but probably they’re thinking just the same about you.

From Salon ● Sep. 1, 2025

But what no one seems to be claiming is that all this appeal and grace will breed new thoughts in architecture, the way Sugimoto’s theaters and waxworks revealed new options for photography.

From New York Times ● Aug. 6, 2021

This week saw mannequins of Little Mix unveiled at Madame Tussauds waxworks in central London.

From BBC ● Jul. 30, 2021

They were like the most wonderful waxworks you ever saw.

From "The Magician's Nephew" by C. S. Lewis

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