as in monsters
a strange or horrible and often frightening creature
born Joseph Merrick, the so-called Elephant Man was for a time exhibited as a sideshow grotesquerie
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Recent Examples of grotesqueries
As in Pillion and elsewhere, Melling imbues a premise’s potential grotesqueries with real and specific feelings.
—
Jackson McHenry, Vulture, 20 Feb. 2026
The abundance of these grotesqueries was almost stranger than their existence.
—Miles Klee, Rolling Stone, 14 Dec. 2025
Jackson McHenry, Vulture, 20 Feb. 2026
The abundance of these grotesqueries was almost stranger than their existence.
—Miles Klee, Rolling Stone, 14 Dec. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for grotesqueries
Noun
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There's also aliens or monsters or some other supernatural entity out to get them.—
Kelly Lawler,
USA Today,
30 Mar. 2026
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Sometimes darkly humorous, sometimes strangely heartbreaking, this immersive storytelling experience is Edgar Allan Poe for the modern age; a heart-to-bleeding-heart with madmen, murderers and monsters all dying to tell their story.—
William Earl,
Variety,
25 Mar. 2026
Noun
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Indeed, compared with the realistically creased faces and hangdog stares of the Cubs, the Boston fans behind them are closer to grotesques, an inhuman crush of caricatures.—
Christopher Borrelli,
Chicago Tribune,
10 Feb. 2026
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Medieval carvers had a not dissimilar approach to design, fashioning grotesques for obscure nooks in cathedrals.—
Alex Ross,
New Yorker,
24 Nov. 2025
Noun
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As Amadeus’ brilliance continues to flourish in spite of his personal demons, a questionable reputation and scepticism from the conservative court, Salieri becomes increasingly tormented by this apparent divine gift.—
Payton Turkeltaub,
Variety,
1 Apr. 2026
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But when demons threaten to destroy the City of Immortals, her former lord Indra begs her to return—or else lose both Kaushika and her identity as an apsara.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
1 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Grotesqueries.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/grotesqueries. Accessed 4 Apr. 2026.
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