grotesquerie

noun

gro·​tes·​que·​rie grō-ˈte-skə-rē 

variants or less commonly grotesquery

plural grotesqueries

1

: something that is grotesque

2

: the quality or state of being grotesque : grotesqueness

Synonyms

• grotesque
• monster
• monstrosity
• ogre

Examples of grotesquerie in a Sentence

born Joseph Merrick, the so-called Elephant Man was for a time exhibited as a sideshow grotesquerie

Recent Examples on the Web

Severance is really letting its body-horror freak flag fly this season, and the grotesquerie of its obsession with how bodies can be manipulated, against our will or without our knowledge, includes Gemma but isn’t limited to her. —Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 28 Feb. 2025

Dreamy forests and bright angels curdle and mutate into digital grotesquerie, a Spam Folder of faceless creatures and shock shlock. —Kieran Press-Reynolds, Pitchfork, 19 Feb. 2025

Wreaking gruesome havoc on the city, the Penguin is a fiend for the ages, inhabited by DeVito with uncompromising grotesquerie, right up through his Grand Guignol finish. —Samantha Bergeson, IndieWire, 22 Jan. 2025

And his finest work, the 1990 television soap opera Twin Peaks, could also be considered a sensitive, comedic Rorschach test, given its all-American grotesqueries — the definition of his artistic expression. —Armond White, National Review, 17 Jan. 2025

Word History

Etymology

grotesque + French -erie -ery

First Known Use

circa 1666, in the meaning defined at sense 1