*SET-U

English word origin

Etymology of carny

Clipping of carnival + -y (“diminutive, hypocoristic suffix”).

2 source sectionsBrief source recordWiktionary original ↗
In this entry · 2 source sections

The source etymologies

Wiktionary via Kaikki / Wiktextract

The source reports below are imported and unreviewed by *SET-U. Separate numbered origins and differing source variants are preserved; agreement within this extraction is not independent corroboration.

Source etymology 1

Original entry ↗
noun

A person who works in a carnival (often one who uses exaggerated showmanship or fraud). · The jargon used by carnival workers. · A carnival.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

Clipping of carnival + -y (“diminutive, hypocoristic suffix”).

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

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      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "carnival"
      },
      "expansion": "Clipping of carnival"
    },
    {
      "name": "suf",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "-y",
        "t1": "diminutive, hypocoristic suffix"
      },
      "expansion": "-y (“diminutive, hypocoristic suffix”)"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "carnival",
      "carnival#English"
    ],
    [
      "-y",
      "-y#English"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "noun",
      "glosses": [
        "A person who works in a carnival (often one who uses exaggerated showmanship or fraud).",
        "The jargon used by carnival workers.",
        "A carnival."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "countable",
        "informal",
        "uncountable"
      ],
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  }
}

Source etymology 2

Original entry ↗
noun

Flattery.

verb

To cajole, wheedle, or coax.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

Of unknown origin.

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

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  "lexical": [
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      "pos": "noun",
      "glosses": [
        "Flattery."
      ],
      "tags": [
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    },
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      "glosses": [
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      ],
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      ],
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Where this record stops

This page does not supply an independently verified sound-change sequence, first-use manuscript or complete family tree unless a cited analysis explicitly establishes one. Missing detail here is a limit of this record—not a claim that humanity knows nothing more.

An older meaning does not determine what a word must mean today. Follow the sources, preserve disagreements, and keep ancestry separate from interpretation.

Contribute located evidence for carny →

Source and snapshot

Imported from Wiktionary contributors; extracted by Tatu Ylonen / Wiktextract / Kaikki.org. Selected fields are reformatted and grouped; wording, source identity and etymology sections are retained. CC-BY-SA-4.0 applies to the imported source material.

Dump: 2026-10-01 · Extracted: 2026-10-30. These are snapshot dates, not the word’s first attestation or the page’s revision date.

Source entry and bibliography ↗Wiktionary revision history ↗Acquisition and rights ledger
Machine-source provenance
Source SHA-256
5ff2c072f8099f2d2ce484bd6957bf179f046d2ad37bc36555edf8bb84cb5291
Import run
73216b9a9b78ed3830994bf853103716f5a4dc57099e371e9f8fdc468facca26
Permanent entry ID
w-Y2Fybnk