pageant
noun
- procession or ceremony in elaborate costume
Wiktionary
Pronunciation: /ˈpæd͡ʒənt/
noun
Etymology: Late 14th c. as Middle English pagent, from Medieval Latin pagina (“play in a cycle of mystery plays”), perhaps from Latin pāgina (“page of a book”).
- An elaborate public display, especially a parade in historical or traditional costume.
“For a few moments the events of the day floated in disastrous pageant through my brain, till sleep bathed it in forgetfulness […]”
“The artists who painted these murals brought the pageant of America vividly to life. Everyone knew that the construction of this pageant, and the celebration of America that it implied, was the work of the New Deal.”
- A spectacular ceremony.
- Ellipsis of beauty pageant.
- A wheeled platform for the exhibition of plays, etc.
verb
Etymology: Late 14th c. as Middle English pagent, from Medieval Latin pagina (“play in a cycle of mystery plays”), perhaps from Latin pāgina (“page of a book”).
- To exhibit in show; to represent; to mimic.
“He pageants us.”