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circus

noun
/ˈsɜːkəs/UK/ˈsɝkəs/CA/sɪɾkəs/

Etymology

From Middle English circus, circo, from Latin circus (“ring, circle”), from Ancient Greek κρίκος (kríkos), κίρκος (kírkos, “ring”), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)ker- (“to bend, turn”). Doublet of cirque. Cognate with Old English hring (whence English ring) and Old English hringsetl (“circus”, literally “ring-seat”).

  1. derived from *(s)ker-✻ — “to bend, turn”
  2. derived from κρίκος
  3. derived from circus — “ring, circle”
  4. inherited from circus

Definitions

  1. A traveling company of performers that may include acrobats, clowns, trained animals, and…

    A traveling company of performers that may include acrobats, clowns, trained animals, and other novelty acts, that gives shows usually in a circular tent.

    • The circus will be in town next week.

  2. A round open space in a town or city where multiple streets meet.

    • Oxford Circus in London is at the north end of Regent Street.

  3. A spectacle

    A spectacle; a noisy fuss; a chaotic and/or crowded place.

    • The village would be turned into a circus over this. He groaned, it was just the sort of case the media had a field day over. He had to get the whole thing sorted fast before anyone got wind of it.
  4. ›+ 5 more definitions

    1. An undertaking or arrangement.

      • "Right you are; I'll put him wise," undertook Nickle briskly. "After all, it's entirely your circus. Shall we stay here and—"

    2. In the ancient Roman Empire, a building for chariot racing.

    3. A code name for bomber attacks with fighter escorts in the day time. The attacks were…

      A code name for bomber attacks with fighter escorts in the day time. The attacks were against short-range targets with the intention of occupying enemy fighters and keeping their fighter units in the area concerned.

    4. Circuit

      Circuit; space; enclosure.

      • The narrow circus of my dungeon wall.

    5. To take part in a circus

      To take part in a circus; or to be displayed as if in a circus.

The neighborhood

Derived

a few clowns short of a circus, anticircus, bread and circuses, circus act, circus freak, circusgoer, circus-goer, circusiana, circusless, circuslike, circus peanut, circus ring, circusy, contemporary circus, crap circus, flea circus, flying circus, let's get this circus on the road, media circus, new circus, noncircus, Piccadilly Circus, psychedelic circus, shit circus, three-ring circus

Vish — recursive loop

No curated loop yet for circus. Loops are being traced one word at a time while the ingestion pipeline matures.

sense glosses and etymology drawn from English Wiktionary · source · CC-BY-SA