zany

[zey-nee]

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adjective, za·ni·er, za·ni·est.

ludicrously or whimsically comical; clownish.

noun, plural za·nies.

one who plays the clown or fool in order to amuse others.
a comically wild or eccentric person.
a secondary stock character in old comedies who mimicked his master.
a professional buffoon; clown.
a silly person; simpleton.
a slavish attendant or follower.

Origin of zany

1560–70; (< Middle French) < Italian zan(n)i (later zanno) a servant character in the commedia dell’arte, perhaps orig. the character's name, the Upper Italian form of Tuscan Gianni, for Giovanni John

Related formsza·ni·ly, adverbza·ni·ness, za·ny·ism, nounza·ny·ish, adjective

Synonyms for zany

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3. kook, crazy, lunatic.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for zaniness

madness, silliness, absurdity, nonsense, insanity, idiocy, lunacy, nuttiness, jocularity, funniness, jocosity, wit, comedy, drollery, wittiness, senselessness, imbecility, tomfoolery, foolery, flakiness

Examples from the Web for zaniness

Contemporary Examples of zaniness

Gingrich Restrains His Zaniness Newt confesses that he's been editing his words in an effort not to appear to be "zany."
Fox News Iowa Debate Best Moments (Video)
The Daily Beast Video
December 16, 2011
But whatever her professions of zaniness, lately Barrymore has seemed awfully grown up.
Roller Girl
Nicole LaPorte
October 1, 2009

British Dictionary definitions for zaniness

zany

adjective -nier or -niest

comical in an endearing way; imaginatively funny or comical, esp in behaviour

noun plural -nies

a clown or buffoon, esp one in old comedies who imitated other performers with ludicrous effect
a ludicrous or foolish person

Derived Formszanily, adverbzaniness, nounzanyism, noun

Word Origin for zany

C16: from Italian zanni, from dialect (Venice and Lombardy) Zanni, nickname for Giovanni John; one of the traditional names for a clown

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 zaniness

zany

adj.

1869, from zany (n.). Related: Zanily; zaniness.

zany

comic performer, 1580s, from French zani, from Italian zani, zanni "a zany, clown," originally Zanni, Venetian dialect variant of Gianni, pet form of Giovanni "John." A stock character in old comedies, he aped the principal actors.