bacchanalia

noun

bac·​cha·​na·​lia ˌba-kə-ˈnāl-yə How to pronounce bacchanalia (audio)
ˌbä-
plural bacchanalia
1
Bacchanalia plural : a Roman festival of Bacchus celebrated with dancing, song, and revelry
2
bacchanalian adjective or noun

Examples of bacchanalia in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Amid the bacchanalia, Tiffany was preparing his masterstroke. Robert Klara, Smithsonian Magazine, 15 Feb. 2024 The patience that administrators initially displayed toward their most obstreperous students ran out when the antisocial campus bacchanalia, and their tolerance thereof, did reputational damage to their host institutions. Noah Rothman, National Review, 2 Jan. 2024 Spent a day last week at the bacchanalia of imagination that is San Diego Comic-Con. Sean Carroll, Discover Magazine, 31 July 2010 It was made by Schutz standing inside the thing, forming and adding clay, melding this wild bacchanalia. Vulture, 30 Nov. 2023 The bacchanalia started with a silver bowl of (optional) Jaegermeister shots for guests, whose seats awaited behind tables pre-littered with stale French fries and wine stains. Harper's BAZAAR, 7 Feb. 2023 In February, the bacchanalia begins with the island’s spirited carnival celebrations, called Mas Dominik. Kristin Braswell, Condé Nast Traveler, 3 Feb. 2023 When American businessman Todd Boehly purchased Chelsea Football Club from Roman Abramovich last spring, the conventional wisdom was that the bacchanalia of spending that had defined the Russian oligarch’s time running the team had come to an end. Alex Shephard, The New Republic, 4 Feb. 2023 As Damien Chazelle’s Hollywood bacchanalia prepares to make its big debut, its contenders are slowly coming into focus. Vulture, 4 Nov. 2022

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'bacchanalia.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Latin, from Bacchus

First Known Use

1591, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of bacchanalia was in 1591

Dictionary Entries Near bacchanalia

Cite this Entry

“Bacchanalia.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/bacchanalia. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

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