commedia dell'arte

noun

com·me·dia del·l'ar·te kə-ˌmā-dē-ə-(ˌ)del-ˈär-tē

kə-ˌme-

: Italian comedy of the 16th to 18th centuries improvised from standardized situations and stock characters

Example Sentences

Recent Examples on the Web The initiative kicks off April 2 with Richard Bean's One Man, Two Guvnors, a rollicking update of Carlo Goldoni's commedia dell'arte classic, The Servant of Two Masters, relocated to the English seaside town of Brighton in 1963. —

David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter, 26 Mar. 2020

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

Word History

Etymology

Italian, literally, comedy of art

First Known Use

1823, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler

The first known use of commedia dell'arte was in 1823

See more words from the same year

Dictionary Entries Near commedia dell'arte

commedia

commedia dell'arte

commedia erudita

See More Nearby Entries

Cite this Entry

Style

“Commedia dell'arte.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/commedia%20dell%27arte. Accessed 28 Jan. 2023.

Copy Citation