freak show

See also: freakshow

English

A freak show at the Rutland Fair in Rutland, Vermont in 1941.

Pronunciation

• Audio (AU)

  (file)

Noun

freak show (plural freak shows)

1. An intentionally shocking exhibition of people with unusual characteristics, and which may include people who are gigantic, dwarfish, intersex, physically deformed or who have other extraordinary diseases, conditions and talents.
   • 2012 May 20, Nathan Rabin, “TV: Review: THE SIMPSONS (CLASSIC): “Marge Gets A Job” (season 4, episode 7; originally aired 11/05/1992)”, in The Onion AV Club‎^[1]:

     It only takes a little tweaking for the Simpsons’ home to become a full-on freak show, with Homer as its perpetually apoplectic main attraction.

2. (slang, derogatory) A freakish person, or a group thereof.
   • 2012, Kristen-Paige Madonia, Fingerprints of You:

     “Get out of here, you freak show,” Emmy said.

Translations

freak show

• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 畸形秀 (jīxíngxiù)

• Finnish: freak show (fi)
• French: freak show m
• German: Monstrositätenschau f
• Japanese: 見世物小屋 (みせものごや, misemono goya)
• Polish: dziwoląg m
• Portuguese: show de aberrações m
• Russian: фрик-шо́у (ru) n (frik-šóu), шо́у уро́дов n (šóu uródov), шо́у уро́дцев n (šóu uródcev), пано́птикум (ru) m (panóptikum)
• Spanish: espectáculo de fenómenos m
• Swedish: missfostercirkus

Further reading

• freak show on Wikipedia.Wikipedia