Walter Terry
Did you know?
The oddballs among us are likely familiar with zany as an adjective, meaning “eccentric.” But did you know the word originated as a noun—one that has withstood the test of time? Zanies have been theatrical buffoons since the heyday of the Italian commedia dell’arte, in which a “zanni” was a stock servant character, often an intelligent and proud valet with abundant common sense and a love of practical jokes. Zanni comes from a dialect nickname for Giovanni, the Italian form of John. The character quickly spread throughout European theater circles, inspiring such familiar characters as Pierrot and Harlequin, and by the late 1500s an anglicized version of the noun zany was introduced to English. The adjective appeared within decades, and eventually both adopted more general meanings to refer to or describe those of us who are quipsters and weirdos.
Synonyms of zany
Examples of zany in a Sentence
Jayson Stark, New York Times, 29 May 2026
This sort of vivid world is where a zany maximalist like Sherman feels most at home.
—Lauren Giella, MSNBC Newsweek, 14 May 2026
Neville is there for pitch meetings, where the current cast sits on the floor of Michaels’ office and throws out their zaniest ideas.
—Patrick Ryan, USA Today, 17 Apr. 2026
All of the characters are beautifully zany, which keeps this series from imploding.
—Aramide Tinubu, Variety, 9 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for zany
Cite this Entry
“Zany.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/zany. Accessed 9 Jun. 2026.
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zany
2 of 2 adjective
