menagerie

noun

me·​nag·​er·​ie

mə-ˈnaj-rē, 

-ˈna-jə- 

also -ˈnazh-rē, 

-ˈna-zhə-

1

a

: a place where animals are kept and trained especially for exhibition

b

: a collection of wild or foreign animals kept especially for exhibition

2

: a varied mixture

A menagerie of comedians …

—TV Guide

A menagerie of grotesque statues stood in the garden.

Did you know?

Back in the days of Middle French, ménagerie meant “the management of a household or farm” or “a place where animals are tended.” When English speakers adopted menagerie in the 1600s, they applied it specifically to places where wild and often also foreign animals were kept and trained for exhibition, as well as to the animals so kept. This second meaning was eventually generalized to refer to any varied mixture, especially one that includes things that are strange or foreign to one’s experience.

Synonyms of menagerie

• assortment
• jumble
• variety
• medley
• collage

Examples of menagerie in a Sentence

a menagerie of rare creatures

the living room is eclectically furnished with a menagerie of garage-sale finds

Recent Examples on the Web

For Ella Kent, director of spa, athletics and well-being at Sea Island, understanding the menagerie of services that unite to achieve wellness is vast and different for everyone. —Judith Garrison, AJC.com, 9 June 2026

At its annual Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) on Monday, Apple announced a menagerie of new technologies, including Siri AI, updated Apple Intelligence, new parental controls and more. —Mason Leath, ABC News, 8 June 2026

In the coming years, as Erik Neander took over the baseball operations department, the Rays were at the forefront of analytics with defensive shifts, aggressive platoons, utilizing openers, creating a menagerie of arm slots in the bullpen and, yes, prioritizing exit velocity. —John Romano, The Orlando Sentinel, 22 May 2026

This spring and summer, an interactive exhibit in Oakland will unleash a whole menagerie of cool dinosaurs upon the populace — turkey-sized velociraptors, spiky stegosaurs and of course big ol T-rex itself. —John Metcalfe, Mercury News, 20 May 2026

Word History

Etymology

French ménagerie, from Middle French, management of a household or farm, from menage

First Known Use

1676, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Podcast

Get Word of the Day delivered to your inbox!

Kids Definition

menagerie

noun

me·​nag·​er·​ie mə-ˈnaj-(ə-)rē 

also -ˈnazh-

1

: a place where animals are kept and trained especially for exhibition

2

: a collection of wild or foreign animals kept especially for exhibition