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car·ni·val·esque | \ ˌkär-nə-və-ˈlesk 
\
\Definition of carnivalesque
1 : suggestive of a carnival a carnivalesque celebration
2 : marked by an often mocking or satirical challenge to authority and the traditional social hierarchy
a carnivalesque protest
Examples of carnivalesque in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web Trump's Senate impeachment trial will live up to the carnivalesque expectations that some of us had for it.
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Matthew Walther, TheWeek, "Trump is getting the band back together," 17 Jan. 2020 Just as societies need carnivalesque holidays like Mardi Gras to remain healthy, so music requires regular infusions of Dionysian eroticism and violence.
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Michael Dirda, Washington Post, "A celebration of the outsiders and outcasts who have made music great," 16 Oct. 2019 From pool parties and wet fetes to the carnivalesque Circo de Soca affair, Ibiza Soca Festival is quickly becoming a soca filled event people will be clawing to get into.
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Anquanette Gaspard, Essence, "7 Soca Filled Events That Should Be On Your Radar in 2019," 30 Dec. 2019 Oh, and who can forget the balloons, birthday cake, a bounce house, live music, Folklorico Dancers and story time at this carnivalesque gathering fit for an entire state.
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The Denver Channel, The Know, "Happy birthday, Colorado! Now go blow out your candles at the History Colorado Center," 1 Aug. 2019 Children, groups of friends, couples, and elderly people perch on the moon’s hook, beaming into the camera, acting out a carnivalesque prefiguration of the events of 1969.
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Josephine Livingstone, The New Republic, "On Apollo 11's 50th anniversary, a new exhibition at the Met explores the moon's place in our cultural imagination.," 10 July 2019 The band, which is made of immigrants from Colombia, fuses cumbia, psychedelic rock, afrobeat, dub, parade music, hip-hop, soul and more, making energetic dance music that is steeped in a carnivalesque activist spirit.
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John Adamian, courant.com, "M.A.K.U. Soundsystem’s activist message at Real Art Ways," 14 June 2019 There had been a few days of expert testimony, about the conservation of linear momentum and retrograde extrapolation of blood alcohol content, which had dampened the overall carnivalesque mood.
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Kevin Conley, Town & Country, "Too Much Horsepower," 24 Dec. 2012 But fans from the other 28 countries, such as Axel, have stayed on long after their team’s defeat, to soak up the carnivalesque atmosphere and maximize time with newfound loves.
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Amie Ferris-rotman, Washington Post, "At World Cup, Russians embrace the world, one relationship at a time," 9 July 2018
See MoreThese example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'carnivalesque.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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Time Traveler for carnivalesque
The first known use of carnivalesque was in 1791
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