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round top

round top

8.1
A large tent that holds people for a circus show
  • noun
  • UK
translation icon : carpa de circo
  • Each summer, the traveling circus set up its round top in the center of town.

Examples

  • The performers gathered outside the round top before the evening show began.

  • The circus set up a large round top for the evening show.

  • A sudden storm threatened to tear holes in the round top during the matinee.

  • Many people gathered under the round top to enjoy the performance.

  • Every evening, families would arrive early to find seats under the spacious round top before the show started.

  • The brightly colored round top was a familiar sight in the town square during the annual circus festival.

  • As the sun set, the ringmaster called the audience to gather under the large round top for the main event.

Synonyms

top
vsround top
23 5.3

A large tent used for circus shows

is the traditional term for the same audience tent
marquee
vsround top
  • UK
7 7.1

A large tent used for parties and events

is used for circus audience housing rather than social events
big top
vsround top
5 3.5

A large tent used for circus shows

focuses more on audience seating than on the show itself
circus tent
vsround top
3 2.5

A large tent where circus performers put on shows and people watch

is narrower, referring mainly to seating for the audience

How Big

arena
129 2.9
round top
  • UK
8.1
marquee
16 6.7
pup tent
  • Archaic
3 4.7

Surface Forms

round top singular
round tops plural

Morphology

round + top

The meaning 'a large canvas tent used to house the audience' is directly and literally composed from 'round' (circular) + 'top' (circus tent), so the overall sense is predictable from the constituents. This simple adjective+noun composition follows standard English patterns and would be understandable to a B1 learner who knows both words.

Etymology

Round top comes from the large circus tent with a high, rounded top. People called the whole tent the round top, so today the phrase means 'a large canvas tent' used to hold the 'audience' at a circus show.