Merriam-Webster Logo
SINCE 1828
Menu
×

An Encyclopædia Britannica Company

punchinello

noun pun·chi·nel·lo \ ˌpən-chə-ˈne-(ˌ)lō \
See What's Trending Now See More Trending Words

Definition of punchinello

1 capitalized : a fat short humpbacked clown or buffoon in Italian puppet shows
2 plural punchinellos : a squat grotesque person

Illustration of punchinello

illustration of punchinello

Origin and Etymology of punchinello

modification of Italian dialect polecenella

Seen and Heard

What made you want to look up punchinello? Please tell us where you read or heard it (including the quote, if possible).

show hide

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

WORD OF THE DAY

querulous

play

habitually complaining

Get Word of the Day daily email!

TRENDING NOW

  1. pansexual 'sexual desire or attraction...not limited to a particular gender identity or sexual orientation'

  2. symbiote 'an organism living in symbiosis'

  3. charlatan 'faker or fraud'

  4. lowlife 'a person of low moral character'

  5. kakistocracy 'government by the worst people'

SEE ALL

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Words at Play

alt-5ae23d5d250bd
'Rather Than': Is It a Conjunction or Preposition?

It's both, and here's why.

alt-5ae227cf365c4
‘Magnate’ and ‘Magnet’: Poles Apart

This is kind of a Big Deal

image278155226
All the Hits

8 obscure words for bodily harm

alt-5adf93a49b0b2
The Fossil Encased in "Case In Point"

"In point" only lives in this phrase.

Ask the Editors

image1760257654
2017 Word of the Year: Behind the Scenes

How we chose 'feminism'

video-title-words-of-the-year-1066
Words of the Year: 1066

Or, Why Pig Meat is Called 'Pork' and Cow Meat is Called 'Beef'

video-literally
Literally

How to use a word that (literally) drives some people nuts.

video-his-or-her
Is Singular 'They' a Better Choice?

The awkward case of 'his or her'

Word Games

rain-on-rainbow-umbrella
April 2018 Words of the Day Quiz

The rhyming verb edition.

Take the quiz
image1926873504
Odd Habits and Quirks Quiz

Test your knowledge of strange human behaviors.

Take the quiz
Spell It
Spell It

Can you spell these 10 commonly misspelled words?

Take the quiz
SCRABBLE® Sprint
SCRABBLE® Sprint

SCRABBLE® fans, sharpen your skills!

Play the game