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grotesque

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Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionarygro·tesque I \grō-ˈtesk\ noun ETYMOLOGY Middle French & Old Italian; Middle French, from Old Italian (pittura) grottesca, literally, cave painting, feminine of grottesco of a cave, from grotta DATE 15611. a. a style of decorative art characterized by fanciful or fantastic human and animal forms often interwoven with foliage or similar figures that may distort the natural into absurdity, ugliness, or caricature b. a piece of work in this style2. one that is grotesque3. sans serif II adjective DATE 1603: of, relating to, or having the characteristics of the grotesque: as a. fanciful, bizarre b. absurdly incongruous c. departing markedly from the natural, the expected, or the typicalSynonyms: see fantastic• gro·tesque·ly adverb• gro·tesque·ness nounEnglish Etymologygrotesque 1561, originally a noun, from M.Frhttp://M.Fr. crotesque, from It. grottesco,lit. "of a cave," from grotta (see grotto). Used first of paintings found on the walls of basements of Roman ruins (It. pittura grottesca). Originally "fanciful, fantastic," sense became pejorative after mid-18c. Grotty, slang shortening, had a brief vogue 1964 as part of Liverpool argot popularized by The Beatles in "A Hard Day's Night."Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary-牛津双解-OALD7grotesquegro·tesque / ^rEu5tesk; NAmE ^rou- / adjective1. strange in a way that is unpleasant or offensive 怪诞的；荒唐的；荒谬的: a grotesque distortion of the truth 对事实的荒诞歪曲 It's grotesque to expect a person of her experience to work for so little money. 想让她那样有经验的人为这点钱工作真是荒唐。 2. extremely ugly in a strange way that is often frightening or amusing 丑陋奇异的；奇形怪状的: a grotesque figure 奇形怪状的人像 tribal dancers wearing grotesque masks 戴着奇异面具的部落跳舞者 • gro·tesque·ly adv.noun1. [C] a person who is extremely ugly in a strange way, especially in a book or painting (尤指书画中的)奇形怪状的人,丑陋的人2. the grotesque [sing.] a style of art using grotesque figures and designs 奇异艺术风格Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Thesaurus-11th Editionn. Function: adjective Synonyms: FANTASTIC 2, antic, bizarre Related Words: baroque, flamboyant, rococo; eerie, uncanny, weird; extravagant, extreme; comic, comical, droll, ludicrousWebster's Third New International Dictionary, Unabridgedgro·tesqueI. \(ˈ)grō|tesk\ noun(-s)Etymology: Middle French & Old Italian; Middle French grotesque, crotesque, from Old Italian grottesca, from (pittura) grottesca, literally, cave painting, ancient painting found in the ruins of Rome; grottesca, feminine of grottesco, adjective1. a. : decorative art (as in sculpture, painting, architecture) characterized by fanciful or fantastic representations of human and animal forms often combined with each other and interwoven with representations of foliage, flowers, fruit, wreaths, or other similar figures into a bizarre hybrid composite that is typically aesthetically satisfying but that may use distortion or exaggeration of the natural or the expected to the point of comic absurdity, ridiculous ugliness, or ludicrous caricature b. (1) : a piece of decorative art done in this style (2) : one of the figures or designs in such a piece of decorative art (3) : something suggestive of or resembling such art or the figures or designs of such art < his life was a grotesque, a mixture of sober realities and absurd incongruities >2. : sans serifII. adjective(sometimes -er/-est)Etymology: French & Italian; French, from Italian grottesco, literally, of a cave, from grotta cave + -esco -esque — more at grotto: of, relating to, having the characteristics of, or suggestive of the style of decorative art called grotesque: as a. : fanciful, fantastic, bizarre < a grotesque Halloween costume > b. : comically incongruous or absurd : ridiculously ugly < a wizened and grotesque little old man > c. : having a quality of ludicrous caricature < a grotesque display of what was meant to be politeness > d. : departing markedly from the natural, the expected, or the typical (as by distortion, exaggeration) : atypical, eccentric < a grotesque form of animal life >Synonyms: see fantastic

Grotesque Art Style Adjective Noun From Decorative Figures