minstrel

noun min·strel \ ˈmin(t)-strəl \

Definition of minstrel

1 :one of a class of medieval musical entertainers; especially :a singer of verses to the accompaniment of a harp

wandering minstrels

2 a :musician

b :poet

3 a :any of a troupe of performers typically giving a program of black American melodies, jokes, and impersonations and usually wearing blackface

b :a performance by a troupe of minstrels

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Examples of minstrel in a Sentence

Edna St. Vincent Millay was unofficially the minstrel of Maine, as her poetry celebrates its coast and countryside.

Recent Examples of minstrel from the Web

In blackface as an elderly slave, like something out of a minstrel horror-comedy, Danielle Davis contributes incendiary bits (lifted straight from Boucicault's original) that shock with genuinely arresting postmodern humor.

— dan jakes, Chicago Reader, "Definition Theatre’s An Octoroon boldly subverts, in white-, red-, and blackface," 2 Aug. 2017
Medieval Midsomer Festival PLAN AHEAD Celebrate Midsomer with a 14th century village in England, minstrels, magic, crafts, noon-5 p.m. June 24-25, Camlann Medieval Village, Carnation; $6-$10 (425-788-8624 or camlann.org/midsomer%20festival.htm).

— madeline mckenzie, The Seattle Times, "Community calendar: festivals, fairs and more," 15 June 2017
Circuses, tent revivals, minstrel shows, magicians and more could credit Hatch Show Print for helping pack venues.

— jon waterhouse, CNN, "Hatch Show Print: Inside a Nashville institution," 7 June 2017
One of the best has to do with his henpeckedshoe-salesman father, who briefly frees himself from his wife’s suffocating influence by taking the part of Mr. Bones in a minstrel show.

— stephen king, New York Times, "Stephen King on Paul Theroux’s Portrait of a Truly Horrible Mother," 9 May 2017
A gothic minstrel enters carrying a black electric guitar.

— micah weightman, Orange County Register, "Pacifica’s ‘Once Upon a Mattress’ is where dreams come true," 3 May 2017
After the deed is done, the queen agrees to marry the murderous brother, but on the eve of the wedding, a minstrel finds a piece of the dead brother’s bone in the forest.

— georgia rowe, The Mercury News, "San Francisco Symphony breathes vivid life into Mahler’s dark fairy tale," 14 Jan. 2017
Paul and Storm, dressed as minstrels, opened the show and inserted various themes at appropriate (and inappropriate) times.

— jonathan h. liu, WIRED, "PAX Prime 2011 Through a Boardgamer’s Eyes," 31 Aug. 2011

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

Origin and Etymology of minstrel

Middle English menestrel, from Anglo-French menestral official, servant, minstrel, from Late Latin ministerialis imperial household officer, from Latin ministerium service, from minister servant — more at minister

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 14th century

See Words from the same year

minstrel Synonyms

Synonyms

bard, poet, muse, poetaster, rhymester (also rimester), versifier

Related Words

poetess; poet laureate; scop, troubadour; epigrammatist, epigrammatizer, lyricist, rhymer, sonneteer; rhapsode, rhapsodist

Other Performing Arts Terms

diva, dramaturgy, loge, prestidigitation, proscenium, supernumerary, zany

MINSTREL Defined for English Language Learners

minstrel

noun

Definition of minstrel for English Language Learners

: a musical entertainer in the Middle Ages
: a member of a group of entertainers who performed black American songs and jokes usually with blackened faces