carny

noun, often attributive

car·ny | \ ˈkär-nē

How to pronounce carny (audio)

\

variants: or carney or carnie

plural carnies or carneys

Definition of carny

1 : carnival sense 3a

2 : a person who works with a carnival

Examples of carny in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web The cast is an embarrassment of riches with Bradley Cooper as the ambitious carny, Cate Blanchett as a manipulative psychiatrist, and Willem Dafoe, Toni Collette, Richard Jenkins, Ron Perlman, and Rooney Mara also appearing. — Alison Willmore, Vulture, "65 Movies We Can’t Wait to See in 2021," 5 Jan. 2021 The format is a stop-gap, a novelty, an experiment with a hint of carny. — Christopher Borrelli, chicagotribune.com, "Going to the drive-in with Chicago’s Whitney — because you were wondering what pandemic concertgoing felt like," 20 Sep. 2020 But his museums had venues for dramas and became family affairs with discount tickets for the kiddies — doing for theater what Walt Disney would do for the carny amusement park. — Jack Hitt, Washington Post, "P.T. Barnum, the showman and grifter who held up a funhouse mirror to America," 18 Oct. 2019 The two fighters have kept the fires burning in the four years since the fight, occasionally promising a rematch even though Mayweather is now 42 and subsisting on carny fights against MMA stars and kickboxers. — Matt Bonesteel, The Denver Post, "Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao are beefing again. Will it lead to a rematch?," 24 July 2019 The two fighters have kept the fires burning in the four years since the fight, occasionally promising a rematch even though Mayweather is now 42 and subsisting on carny fights against MMA stars and kickboxers. — Matt Bonesteel, courant.com, "Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao are beefing again. Will it lead to a rematch?," 24 July 2019 On Friday, carny Daman Munk was making ready his mechanical bull for the paying customers, who will begin arriving Saturday for the fair’s nine-day run. — Steve Rubenstein, SFChronicle.com, "Follow the smell of deep-fried Twinkies. Soon you’ll be at the San Mateo fair," 7 June 2019 Most of all, it’s filled with a carny’s pure joy in his capacity to wow, astonish, and entertain. — Noah Berlatsky, The Verge, "The larger-than-life huckster dialogue of Stan Lee," 13 Nov. 2018 This is a vision of the nation that has been sold to us by a generation of politicians who talk brave and act gutless, and by the carny shills in the employ of the industries of death. — Charles P. Pierce, Esquire, "If Newtown Wasn't Enough, Why Would Las Vegas Be Enough?," 2 Oct. 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'carny.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Keep scrolling for more

Learn More about carny

Dictionary Entries near carny

Statistics for carny

Last Updated

14 Jan 2021

Cite this Entry

“Carny.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/carny. Accessed 22 Jan. 2021.

WORD OF THE DAY

sarcophagus

Listen to the pronunciation of sarcophagus

See Definitions and Examples »

Get Word of the Day daily email!

Test Your Vocabulary

Slippery Words Quiz—Changing with the Times

What is an earlier meaning of nice?

Name That Thing

Test your visual vocabulary with our 10-question challenge!

Universal Daily Crossword

A daily challenge for crossword fanatics.