Definitions for GROTESQUE
groʊˈtɛskgrotesque

Princeton's WordNetRate this definition:2.8 / 4 votes

1. grotesqueadjective

   art characterized by an incongruous mixture of parts of humans and animals interwoven with plants

2. grotesque, monstrousadjective

   distorted and unnatural in shape or size; abnormal and hideous

   "tales of grotesque serpents eight fathoms long that churned the seas"; "twisted into monstrous shapes"

3. antic, fantastic, fantastical, grotesqueadjective

   ludicrously odd

   "Hamlet's assumed antic disposition"; "fantastic Halloween costumes"; "a grotesque reflection in the mirror"

WiktionaryRate this definition:1.0 / 1 vote

1. grotesquenoun

   A style of ornamentation characterized by fanciful combinations of intertwined forms.

2. grotesquenoun

   Anything grotesque.

3. grotesquenoun

   A sans serif typeface.

4. grotesqueadjective

   distorted and unnatural in shape or size; abnormal and hideous

5. grotesqueadjective

   disgusting or otherwise viscerally reviling.

6. grotesqueadjective

   sans serif.

7. Etymology: grotesque (French: grotesque), from grottesco, from grotta. Compare English grotto.

Samuel Johnson's DictionaryRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. Grotesqueadjective

   Distorted of figure; unnatural; wildly formed.

   Etymology: grotesque, French; grottesco, Italian.

   The champaign head
   Of a steep wilderness, whose hairy sides
   With thicket overgrown, grotesque and wild,
   Access deny’d. John Milton, Paradise Lost, b. iv.

   There is yet a lower sort of poetry and painting, which is out of nature; for a farce is that in poetry which grotesque is in a picture: the persons and actions of a farce are all unnatural, and the manners false, that is, inconsisting with the characters of mankind: grotesque painting is the just resemblance of this. John Dryden, Dufresnoy.

   An hideous figure of their foes they drew,
   Nor lines, nor looks, nor shades, nor colours true,
   And this grotesque design expos’d to publick view. Dryden.

   Palladian walls, Venetian doors,
   Grotesco roofs, and stucco floors. Alexander Pope, Sat. of Horace.

Webster DictionaryRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. Grotesquenoun

   a whimsical figure, or scene, such as is found in old crypts and grottoes

2. Grotesquenoun

   artificial grotto-work

3. Etymology: [F., fr. It. grottesco, fr. grotta grotto. See Grotto.]

WikidataRate this definition:5.0 / 1 vote

1. Grotesque

   The word grotesque comes from the same Latin root as "grotto", which originated from Greek krypte "hidden place", meaning a small cave or hollow. The original meaning was restricted to an extravagant style of Ancient Roman decorative art rediscovered and then copied in Rome at the end of the 15th century. The "caves" were in fact rooms and corridors of the Domus Aurea, the unfinished palace complex started by Nero after the Great Fire of Rome in AD 64, which had become overgrown and buried, until they were broken into again, mostly from above. Spreading from Italian to the other European languages, the term was long used largely interchangeably with arabesque and moresque for types of decorative patterns using curving foliage elements. Since at least the 18th century, grotesque has come to be used as a general adjective for the strange, fantastic, ugly, incongruous, unpleasant, or disgusting, and thus is often used to describe weird shapes and distorted forms such as Halloween masks. In art, performance, and literature, grotesque, however, may also refer to something that simultaneously invokes in an audience a feeling of uncomfortable bizarreness as well as empathic pity. More specifically, the grotesque forms on Gothic buildings, when not used as drain-spouts, should not be called gargoyles, but rather referred to simply as grotesques, or chimeras.

Chambers 20th Century DictionaryRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. Grotesque

   grō-tesk′, adj. extravagantly formed: ludicrous.—n. (art) extravagant ornament, containing animals, plants, &c. not really existing.—adv. Grotesque′ly.—ns. Grotesque′ness; Grotesqu′ery. [Fr. grotesque—It. grotesca—grotta, a grotto.]

How to pronounce GROTESQUE?

1. Alex

   US English

   David

   US English

   Mark

   US English

   Daniel

   British

   Libby

   British

   Mia

   British

   Karen

   Australian

   Hayley

   Australian

   Natasha

   Australian

   Veena

   Indian

   Priya

   Indian

   Neerja

   Indian

   Zira

   US English

   Oliver

   British

   Wendy

   British

   Fred

   US English

   Tessa

   South African

How to say GROTESQUE in sign language?

Numerology

1. Chaldean Numerology

   The numerical value of GROTESQUE in Chaldean Numerology is: 9

2. Pythagorean Numerology

   The numerical value of GROTESQUE in Pythagorean Numerology is: 1

Examples of GROTESQUE in a Sentence

1. Jeremy Corbyn:

   Going to war creates a legacy of bitterness and problems, let us be a force for change in the world, a force for humanity in the world, a force for peace in the world, and a force that recognizes we can not go on like this, with grotesque levels of global inequality, grotesque threats to our environment all around the world, without the rich and powerful governments stepping up to the plate to make sure our world becomes safer and better -- and those people don't end up in poverty, in refugee camps, wasting their lives away.

2. Trump Jr.:

   I hope every elected Democrat in the country has the common decency and moral courage to disavow these types of grotesque statements from members of their party.

3. Steve Matteson:

   Swiss typographers gravitated to grotesque designs like Helvetica because of their suitability for grid-based typography.

4. Luis Li:

   Today marks the successful culmination of Mrs. Bryant’s courageous battle to hold accountable those who engaged in this grotesque conduct, she fought for her husband, her daughter, and all those in the community whose deceased family were treated with similar disrespect. We hope her victory at trial and this settlement will put an end to this practice.

5. Elijah Cummings:

   The Trump administration's actions at the southern border are grotesque and dehumanizing, there seems to be open contempt for the rule of law and for basic human decency.

Popularity rank by frequency of use

References

1. ^ Princeton's WordNet
   http://wordnetweb.princeton.edu/perl/webwn?s=GROTESQUE
2. ^ Wiktionary
   https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Grotesque
3. ^ Samuel Johnson's Dictionary
   https://johnsonsdictionaryonline.com/views/search.php?term=GROTESQUE
4. ^ Webster Dictionary
   https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/GROTESQUE
5. ^ Wikidata
   https://www.wikidata.org/w/index.php?search=GROTESQUE
6. ^ Chambers 20th Century Dictionary
   https://www.gutenberg.org/files/37683/37683-h/37683-h.htm#:~:text=GROTESQUE