shadow show
- noun
- /ˈʃædoʊ ʃoʊ/
- The children were delighted by the shadow show performed at the festival.
Examples
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They attended a fascinating shadow show that depicted ancient legends using lights and silhouettes.
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The shadow show captivated the audience last night.
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A traditional shadow show uses figures cut from leather or paper to create the characters.
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Have you ever seen a shadow show?
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The children were captivated by the shadow show that used puppets to tell a fairy tale.
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During the festival, a shadow show entertained the audience with intricate designs and stories.
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At the community center, we enjoyed a shadow show that combined music and storytelling.
Synonyms
A show that uses hand or puppet shadows on a screen to tell a story
A performance that shows moving shadow figures on a screen
How Elaborate
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning 'a staged performance using shadows' is directly and predictably composed from 'shadow' (a dark area formed when light is blocked) + 'show' (a staged event). This compound noun follows a common English noun+noun pattern and has clear cross-linguistic equivalents (e.g., Spanish 'teatro de sombras'), so a B1 learner who knows both words would readily infer the meaning.
Etymology
Shadow show comes from old puppet plays where cut-out figures or a puppeteer's hands were placed near a light to make moving shadows on a screen. That simple picture of shapes acting like people is why shadow show means 'a play told using shadows'.