vaudevillian
3
9.9
- noun
- /ˌvɔːdəˈvɪljən/
- Archaic
:
vaudevilliano
- The Glass family were seven children, all geniuses, who each appeared on a show called 'It's a Wise Child', the sons and daughters of two vaudevillians.
- an old vaudevillian
Examples
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Her grandfather, an old vaudevillian, taught her.
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A couple of ex-vaudevillians, sir.
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It was a vaudevillian laugh, the kind of laugh that people can get famous for.
Fiction book (1998) -
I'm just a vaudevillian.
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Hank bounced into the bar wearing a white and light blue-striped sports jacket of the sort I associated with old-time vaudevillians, a white shirt, a red bow tie, white pants, white shoes, and a straw boater hat.
Fiction book (1998) -
Her grandfather was a talented vaudevillian who performed in a variety of acts, including comedy and music.
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Many famous stars began their careers as vaudevillians before moving on to film and television.
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The audience laughed as the vaudevillian juggled and sang during the lively performance.
Synonyms
261
2.5
A person who entertains people, for example by singing or acting
117
2.1
A person who performs to make people laugh or enjoy themselves
Antonyms
How Versatile
Surface Forms
Morphology
vaudevillian = vaudeville (transparent) = vaudeville + ian
Formed by the noun 'vaudeville' plus the productive suffix '-ian' meaning 'person associated with', so the meaning 'performer in vaudeville' is directly derived.
Etymology
The word vaudevillian comes from vaudeville, a French name for a variety show of songs, jokes, and dance that became popular on stage. A helpful way to remember it is to link vaudeville to the French voix 'voice' or to old song names, because these shows were full of singing and short acts. So a vaudevillian is a stage performer who does many kinds of acts.