Princeton's WordNet(5.00 / 1 vote)Rate this definition:

1. circus(noun)

   a travelling company of entertainers; including trained animals

   "he ran away from home to join the circus"

2. circus(noun)

   a performance given by a traveling company of acrobats, clowns, and trained animals

   "the children always love to go to the circus"

3. circus, carnival(noun)

   a frenetic disorganized (and often comic) disturbance suggestive of a large public entertainment

   "it was so funny it was a circus"; "the whole occasion had a carnival atmosphere"

4. circus(noun)

   (antiquity) an open-air stadium for chariot races and gladiatorial games

5. circus(noun)

   an arena consisting of an oval or circular area enclosed by tiers of seats and usually covered by a tent

   "they used the elephants to help put up the circus"

6. Circus, genus Circus(noun)

   a genus of haws comprising the harriers

Wiktionary(5.00 / 1 vote)Rate this definition:

1. circus(Noun)

   A traveling company of performers that may include acrobats, clowns, trained animals, and other novelty acts, that gives shows usually in a circular tent.

   The circus will be in town next week.

2. circus(Noun)

   A round open space in a town or city where multiple streets meet.

   Oxford Circus in London is at the north end of Regent Street.

3. circus(Noun)

   In the ancient Roman Empire, a building for chariot racing.

4. circus(Noun)

   A code name for bomber attacks with fighter escorts in the day time. The attacks were against short-range targets with the intention of occupying enemy fighters and keeping their fighter units in the area concerned.

5. circus(Noun)

   Circuit; space; enclosure.

   The narrow circus of my dungeon wall. uE000165148uE001 Byron.

Webster Dictionary(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. Circus(noun)

   a level oblong space surrounded on three sides by seats of wood, earth, or stone, rising in tiers one above another, and divided lengthwise through the middle by a barrier around which the track or course was laid out. It was used for chariot races, games, and public shows

2. Circus(noun)

   a circular inclosure for the exhibition of feats of horsemanship, acrobatic displays, etc. Also, the company of performers, with their equipage

3. Circus(noun)

   circuit; space; inclosure

Origin: [L. circus circle, ring, circus (in sense 1). See Circle, and cf. Cirque.]

Freebase(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. Circus

   A circus is commonly a travelling company of performers that may include clowns, acrobats, trained animals, trapeze acts, musicians, hoopers, tightrope walkers, jugglers, unicyclists and other stunt-oriented artists. The word also describes the performance that they give, which is usually a series of acts choreographed to music and introduced by a ringmaster. A traditional circus performance is normally held in a ring 13 m in diameter. This dimension was adopted by Philip Astley to enable a horse rider to stand upright on a cantering horse to perform a series of acrobatic maneuvers and to more easily retain their balance. Circuses often have a system of tiered seating around the ring for the public; since the late 19th to early 20th century, many circus performances have taken place under large tents commonly referred to as "The Big Top".

Chambers 20th Century Dictionary(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. Circus

   sėr′kus, n. a circular building for the exhibition of games: a place for the exhibition of feats of horsemanship: a group of houses arranged in the form of a circle: applied to nature, as, e.g., high hills surrounding a plain.—n. Cirque (sėrk), a circus: a ring of some sort. [L. circus; cog. with Gr. kirkos.]

Suggested Resources(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. circus

   Song lyrics by circus -- Explore a large variety of song lyrics performed by circus on the Lyrics.com website.

Numerology

1. Chaldean Numerology

   The numerical value of circus in Chaldean Numerology is: 9

2. Pythagorean Numerology

   The numerical value of circus in Pythagorean Numerology is: 1

Sample Sentences & Example Usage

1. James Barrett Scotty Reston:

   Half circus and half Supreme Court.

2. Jerry Coleman:

   Jesus Alou is in the on-deck circus.

3. Ingrid Newkirk:

   If the decision is serious, then the circus needs to do it NOW.

4. H. L. Mencken:

   Democracy is the art of running the circus from the monkey cage.

5. Darla Jones:

   Our wounds have healed, but ... they're making a circus out of it.

Images & Illustrations of circus

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