1
: farmer, countryman
2
: a rude ill-bred person : boor
3
a
: a fool, jester, or comedian in an entertainment (such as a play)
specifically
: a grotesquely dressed comedy performer in a circus
b
: a person who habitually jokes and plays the buffoon
c
clowned; clowning; clowns
: to act as or like a clown
always clowning around
Synonyms
Examples of clown in a Sentence
Noun
Those big shoes make you look like a clown!
Who's the clown standing in the middle of the road?
those clowns at the state capital
Recent Examples on the Web
Lizz Schumer, Peoplemag, 1 Apr. 2024
Sad clown Vanya falls for Yelena, who also catches the eye of a local doctor, Astrov; Astrov, meanwhile, is adored by Sonya.
—Helen Shaw, The New Yorker, 25 Mar. 2024
Each then picks a skill to pursue along with a clown name.
—Penny E Schwartz, Orange County Register, 24 Mar. 2024
Phoenix clinched the best actor award for his portrayal of Arthur Fleck, a mentally ill party clown who makes his transformation into the famed DC villain.
—Clayton Davis, Variety, 22 Mar. 2024
And clearly, these two clowns shouldn't be in charge of ...
—Pilar Arias, Fox News, 19 Mar. 2024
The parade will include marching and drum bands, a color guard, floats, clowns and various metro Detroit organizations.
—Detroit Free Press, 10 Mar. 2024
The culprit is tall drink of water Mickey Steele (Devon Crittenden), recognizable to us as the clown from earlier.
—EW.com, 4 Mar. 2024
An oversize clown filling the skyline sent an audience member shrieking for the door.
—Julie Seabaugh, Los Angeles Times, 21 Mar. 2024
New York Times, 26 Mar. 2024
This cirque show combines acrobatic performance with the art of clowning while exploring fear, identity, recognition and power.
—Brittany Delay, The Mercury News, 27 Feb. 2024
The Padres are in spring training now, so From the Archives goes back to 1965 for this photo of Padre Tommy Helms clowning around trying to cool off the hot bat of teammate Lee May.
—U-T Staff, San Diego Union-Tribune, 28 Feb. 2024
For her, there is no clowning around with soft-serve ice cream or fancier flavors, such as the ubiquitous salted caramel.
—Jill Wendholt Silva, Kansas City Star, 31 Jan. 2024
University of South Wales researchers surveyed 528 people who expressed a fear of clowns or the act of clowning.
—Scott Lafee, San Diego Union-Tribune, 5 Dec. 2023
From matching ensembles to clowning each other, here are Travis Kelce and Patrick Mahomes' most memorable friendship moments.
—Stephanie Sengwe, Peoplemag, 23 Oct. 2023
While laughing and clowning around, Zendaya struck a pose — an iconic pose.
—Hedy Phillips, Peoplemag, 2 Oct. 2023
Advertisement Deidre Scott, who had heard about the performance through friends in the clowning community, took a seat in the old auditorium that looks like a high school theater circa 1968 except for the large paintings inspired by tarot cards lining the walls.
—Deborah Netburn, Los Angeles Times, 11 Sep. 2023
Noun
But what struck me was the talking black cat and the killer clown having a shoot-out with the KGB, bullets flying everywhere, and, impossibly, no one getting hit.
—Lizz Schumer, Peoplemag, 1 Apr. 2024
Sad clown Vanya falls for Yelena, who also catches the eye of a local doctor, Astrov; Astrov, meanwhile, is adored by Sonya.
—Helen Shaw, The New Yorker, 25 Mar. 2024
Each then picks a skill to pursue along with a clown name.
—Penny E Schwartz, Orange County Register, 24 Mar. 2024
Phoenix clinched the best actor award for his portrayal of Arthur Fleck, a mentally ill party clown who makes his transformation into the famed DC villain.
—Clayton Davis, Variety, 22 Mar. 2024
And clearly, these two clowns shouldn't be in charge of ...
—Pilar Arias, Fox News, 19 Mar. 2024
The parade will include marching and drum bands, a color guard, floats, clowns and various metro Detroit organizations.
—Detroit Free Press, 10 Mar. 2024
The culprit is tall drink of water Mickey Steele (Devon Crittenden), recognizable to us as the clown from earlier.
—EW.com, 4 Mar. 2024
An oversize clown filling the skyline sent an audience member shrieking for the door.
—Julie Seabaugh, Los Angeles Times, 21 Mar. 2024
Verb
In 2021, there was Brian Kelly, then a 60-year-old son of Chelsea, Mass., and head coach of the Louisiana State football team, who tried on a Southern accent in a speech during a men’s basketball game and was instantly clowned for it.
—New York Times, 26 Mar. 2024
This cirque show combines acrobatic performance with the art of clowning while exploring fear, identity, recognition and power.
—Brittany Delay, The Mercury News, 27 Feb. 2024
The Padres are in spring training now, so From the Archives goes back to 1965 for this photo of Padre Tommy Helms clowning around trying to cool off the hot bat of teammate Lee May.
—U-T Staff, San Diego Union-Tribune, 28 Feb. 2024
For her, there is no clowning around with soft-serve ice cream or fancier flavors, such as the ubiquitous salted caramel.
—Jill Wendholt Silva, Kansas City Star, 31 Jan. 2024
University of South Wales researchers surveyed 528 people who expressed a fear of clowns or the act of clowning.
—Scott Lafee, San Diego Union-Tribune, 5 Dec. 2023
From matching ensembles to clowning each other, here are Travis Kelce and Patrick Mahomes' most memorable friendship moments.
—Stephanie Sengwe, Peoplemag, 23 Oct. 2023
While laughing and clowning around, Zendaya struck a pose — an iconic pose.
—Hedy Phillips, Peoplemag, 2 Oct. 2023
Advertisement Deidre Scott, who had heard about the performance through friends in the clowning community, took a seat in the old auditorium that looks like a high school theater circa 1968 except for the large paintings inspired by tarot cards lining the walls.
—Deborah Netburn, Los Angeles Times, 11 Sep. 2023
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'clown.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
Phrases Containing clown
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Cite this Entry
“Clown.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/clown. Accessed 19 Apr. 2024.
Copy Citation
Kids Definition
clown
1 of 2 noun1
: a rude and often stupid person
2
: a performer (as in a play or circus) who usually wears funny clothes and makeup and tries to make people laugh
clownish
adjective
ˈklau̇-nish
clownishly
adverb
clownishness
noun
clown
2 of 2 verb
: to act like a clown
More from Merriam-Webster on clown
Nglish: Translation of clown for Spanish Speakers
Britannica English: Translation of clown for Arabic Speakers
Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about clown
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