a gentle jester, the cartoonist more often tries to evoke a broad smile than a hearty guffaw
the king called for some much-needed entertainment from his jester
Recent Examples on the WebFor as joyous and silly as clowns are supposed to be, pop culture has twisted the perception of these jesters to such an extent that some people only have a negative association with them.—Ew Staff, EW.com, 24 May 2024 And every year some 200 Renaissance fairs are held across dozens of US states and Canada, where participants come dressed as knights, jesters, damsels, pirates or even goblins, wizards, witches and fairies.—Eva Rothenberg, CNN, 17 Mar. 2024 These people are clowns, jesters, fools in the medieval sense.—Jp Brammer, Los Angeles Times, 8 Dec. 2023 Clad head-to-toe in black, needy and needling, and most crucially a truth-teller in a world of polite lies and shallow eruptions, Lewis was a specter haunting the show, its dark jester and, in many ways, its conscience.—Boris Kachka, Washington Post, 29 Feb. 2024 See all Example Sentences for jester
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'jester.' 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
Middle English gestour "reciter of romances, minstrel, entertainer," from gesten "to recite romances" + -our-er entry 2 — more at jest entry 2
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