car·ni·val
ˈkär-nə-vəl 
1
: a season or festival of merrymaking before Lent
2
a
: an instance of merrymaking, feasting, or masquerading
b
: an instance of riotous excess
a carnival of violence
3
a
: a traveling enterprise offering amusements
b
: an organized program of entertainment or exhibition : festival
a winter carnival
: suggestive of or suited to a carnival
a carnival atmosphere
carnival colors
Examples of carnival in a Sentence
Noun
the school's annual winter carnival
That part of town is a carnival on Friday and Saturday nights.
There is a carnival atmosphere in the office.
The garden became a carnival of color.
Recent Examples on the Web
John Metcalfe, Mercury News, 19 Sep. 2025
There's a festive parade, a medallion hunt, lederhosen games, carnival rides, and — of course — plenty of beer.
—Cailey Gleeson, jsonline.com, 18 Sep. 2025
Anna Kaufman, USA TODAY, 30 Mar. 2023
Transform your salad spinner into a carnival-style spin art machine.
—Lauren Piro, Good Housekeeping, 31 Oct. 2022
See All Example Sentences for carnival
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Noun
Come for the beer and wine and celebrate with live entertainment, music, dancing, local food and craft vendors as well as the kids carnival, which will include inflatable games, a giant slide, live animals, mini golf, train rides, face painting and balloon artists.
—John Metcalfe, Mercury News, 19 Sep. 2025
There's a festive parade, a medallion hunt, lederhosen games, carnival rides, and — of course — plenty of beer.
—Cailey Gleeson, jsonline.com, 18 Sep. 2025
Adjective
Customers at Starbucks will be introduced to a new interface with a carnival-style wheel.
—Anna Kaufman, USA TODAY, 30 Mar. 2023
Transform your salad spinner into a carnival-style spin art machine.
—Lauren Piro, Good Housekeeping, 31 Oct. 2022
See All Example Sentences for carnival
Cite this Entry
“Carnival.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/carnival. Accessed 21 Sep. 2025.
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