clown
clown Lexical Profile
clown Game Scores & Validity
• noun
A comic entertainer, especially one in a circus or theatrical performance, who wears painted makeup, a distinctive bright costume, and a red nose while performing slapstick routines.
"The circus clown juggled colorful balls while riding a tiny unicycle around the ring."
A foolish, incompetent, or playfully silly person who is not taken seriously.
"He was always the class clown, making faces behind the teacher's back to make everyone laugh."
An unsophisticated, ill-bred, or clumsy country person (archaic).
"In Elizabethan drama, the country clown often provided comic relief through his misunderstandings of courtly manners."
• verb
To behave in a comical, playful, or silly way in order to amuse others.
"The children were clowning around in the living room while waiting for dinner."
American To mock, ridicule, or make someone look foolish (informal or slang).
"His friends clowned him all afternoon for wearing mismatched shoes to the game."
• Rhymes for clown
Word Origin & Etymology
First recorded in the mid-16th century meaning 'rustic' or 'boor', the word is likely of Low German or Scandinavian origin (compare Icelandic klunni, meaning 'clumsy, boorish fellow'), originally referring to a clumsy country bumpkin before shifting to the theatrical stock character.