carnival
noun
- mobile amusement show
- festive period preceding Lent
Wiktionary
Pronunciation: /ˈkɑːnɪvəl/ / [ˈkɑːnɪvl̩] / /ˈkɑɹnɪvəl/
name
Etymology: See carnival.
- The season just before the beginning of the Western Christian season of Lent.
noun
Etymology: See carnival.
- Alternative form of carnival; especially in the sense "any of a number of festivals held just before the beginning of Lent."
“To the statement above we may, of course, add that a far greater number have never had the “luck” of seeing a Continental Fair;— the Carnivals of Italy, of France,—a Russian Fair,—or the Carnivals and Jahrmarkts of Germany.”
verb
Etymology: From Middle French carnaval, from Italian carnevale, possibly from the Latin phrase carnem levāmen (“meat dismissal”). Other scholars suggest Latin carnuālia (“meat-based country feast”) or carrus nāvālis (“boat wagon; float”) instead. Doublet of carnaval.
- To participate in a carnival.
- To move about playfully or wildly.
“The spot is a marvel of beauty and taste; and here, where dust and sun carnivaled for so many years, thousands of every class congregate to listen each evening to music discoursed for the amusement of oi polloi.”
“Sitting in the Chevy, Saturday night on Main Street carnivaling around her, she told herself that she understood, that Ross had made a mistake, had pre-arranged this celebration for tonight and thought that his date with her was tomorrow.”