car·ni·val

[kahr-nuh-vuhl]
noun
1.
a traveling amusement show, having sideshows, rides, etc.
2.
any merrymaking, revelry, or festival, as a program of sports or entertainment: a winter carnival.
3.
the season immediately preceding Lent, often observed with merrymaking; Shrovetide.

Origin:
1540–50; < Italian carnevale, Old Italian carnelevare taking meat away, equivalent to carne flesh (< Latin carnem, accusative of caro) + levare < Latin levāre to lift

car·ni·val·esque, car·ni·val·like, adjective
pre·car·ni·val, adjective


2. fair, celebration, fete, holiday.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
Cite This Source Link To carnival
00:10
Carnival is always a great word to know.
So is slumgullion. Does it mean:
a stew of meat, vegetables, potatoes, etc.
a calculus or concretion found in the stomach or intestines of certain animals, esp. ruminants, formerly reputed to be an effective remedy for poison.
Collins
World English Dictionary
carnival (ˈkɑːnɪvəl) [Click for IPA pronunciation guide]
 
n
1.  a.  a festive occasion or period marked by merrymaking, processions, etc: esp in some Roman Catholic countries, the period just before Lent
 b.  (as modifier): a carnival atmosphere
2.  a travelling fair having merry-go-rounds, etc
3.  a show or display arranged as an amusement
4.  (Austral) a sports meeting
 
[C16: from Italian carnevale, from Old Italian carnelevare a removing of meat (referring to the Lenten fast)]

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Etymonline
Word Origin & History

carnival
1549, "time of merrymaking before Lent," from It. carnevale "Shrove Tuesday," from older It. forms like Milanese *carnelevale, O.Pisan carnelevare "to remove meat," lit. "raising flesh," from L. caro "flesh" + levare "lighten, raise;" folk etymology is from M.L. carne vale " 'flesh, farewell.' " Meaning
"a circus or fair" is 1931, N.Amer., as is the short form carny for "one who works at a carnival."
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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Example sentences
It's a celebration or carnival to mark the end of winter.
Thanks for submitting this post to our blog carnival.
For a full list of past carnival roundups and the hosts thoughts on the entries
  you can find them here.
From this unlikely marriage-the computer lab and the carnival-the video-game
  industry was born.
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