Unnumbered source etymology
Original entry ↗noun
A fool or clown, especially one whose business on the stage is to imitate foolishly the actions of the principal clown.
verb
To mimic foolishly.
adj
Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventoryUnusual and awkward in a funny, comical manner; outlandish; clownish. · Ludicrously or incongruously comical.
From Middle French zani, zanni, from Italian zanni (“a kind of masked clown character”), from Zanni, a Venetian form of Giovanni. Doublet of Zanni, John, and Giovanni.
Relationships mentioned by the source
These are extracted mentions, not a timeline or a verified sequence of immediate parents.
Inspect preserved source fields
Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.
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