pagliacci
The Italian word for clowns is pagliacci.
pagliacci refers to performers who wear colorful costumes and makeup to make people laugh.
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
In a colloquial sense, the singular form pagliaccio can be used to call someone a fool or to describe someone being ridiculous.
How does it change in a sentence?
The singular form of the word is pagliaccio. The plural form pagliacci is used for both masculine and feminine clowns, as the word is masculine by default.
Did you know?
- The word pagliaccio is derived from paglia, meaning 'straw'. This refers to the straw-stuffed costumes worn by early comic performers to protect themselves from falls.
- The world-famous opera Pagliacci by Leoncavallo uses this word as its title. It tells a tragic story where a pagliaccio must perform a comedy while his heart is breaking.
- Italian culture has a deep history with the Commedia dell'Arte, where characters like Arlecchino paved the way for the modern pagliaccio. These roles relied on improvisation rather than a set script.
Examples in context
- Ho paura dei pagliacci.I have a fear of clowns.This sentence is useful for expressing a fear of pagliacci.Tatoeba #2669603 by Guybrush88, translation #1369485 by Spamster
- I pagliacci ci terrorizzano.We're terrified of clowns.This sentence is useful for expressing that pagliacci cause terror.Tatoeba #14000757 by madriot, translation #12879852 by Ussis
- Siete pagliacci?Are you clowns?This sentence is useful for asking if someone is a pagliacci.Tatoeba #11894336 by Guybrush88, translation #11894333 by CK
- Durante il carnevale a Venezia, ho ammirato i pagliacci che facevano ridere grandi e piccini.During the carnival in Venice, I admired the clowns who made both adults and children laugh.
- 4 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Martina and Lorenzo are talking about a circus they visited.
- MartinaTi sono piaciuti i pagliacci?Did you like the clowns?
- LorenzoSì, erano molto divertenti.Yes, they were very funny.
- MartinaAnche i bambini ridevano molto.The children were laughing a lot too.
- LorenzoI pagliacci sono sempre i migliori.The clowns are always the best.
Sources
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
