Log in or Sign up
  1. charivari love

Definitions

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition

  1. n. Regional See shivaree. See Regional Note at shivaree.

Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia

  1. n. A mock serenade, with kettles, horns, etc., intended as an annoyance or insult. Serenades of this sort were formerly inflicted in France upon newly married couples and upon politically unpopular persons, and are still occasionally heard in the United States, where they are also known as callithumpian concerts.
  2. n. [capitalized] The name of a satirical journal founded in Paris in 1832.
  3. To treat to a charivari.

Wiktionary

  1. n. The noisy banging of pots and pans as a mock serenade to a newly married couple, or similar occasion.
  2. n. Any loud, cacophonous noise or hubbub.

GNU Webster's 1913

  1. n. A mock serenade of discordant noises, made with kettles, tin horns, etc., designed to annoy and insult; -- called also shivaree.

WordNet 3.0

  1. n. a noisy mock serenade (made by banging pans and kettles) to a newly married couple

Etymologies

  1. From French charivari. (Wiktionary)
  2. French, from Old French, perhaps from Late Latin carībaria, headache, from Greek karēbariā : karē, head; see ker-1 in Indo-European roots + barus, heavy; see gwerə-1 in Indo-European roots. (American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition)

Examples

  • “Regional Note: Shivaree is the most common American regional form of charivari, a French word meaning "a noisy mock serenade for newlyweds" and probably deriving in turn from a Late Latin word meaning "headache.”

    The WELL: Sugaree

  • “The charivari is a custom that the Canadians got from the”

    Roughing It in the Bush

  • “But I can tell you that a charivari is not always a joke.”

    Roughing It in the Bush

  • “The popping of revolvers, the clanging of cow bells, the clash of tin boilers -- all that medley of discord which lends volume to the horror known as a charivari -- tore to shreds the harmony of the night.”

    A Man Four-Square

  • “The charivari is a custom that the Canadians got from the French, in the”

    Roughing It in the Bush

  • “In the universities of Southern France, the marriage of resident doctors and students was also contemplated, and the statutes of the University of Aix contain a table of charges payable as "charivari" by a rector,”

    Life in the Medieval University

  • “On her first evening in Gopher Prairie Cy had appeared at the head of a "charivari," banging immensely upon a discarded automobile fender.”

    Main Street

  • “Dan was full of a wild idea that we should all meet them at the gate, armed with cowbells and tin-pans, and "charivari" them up the lane.”

    The Golden Road

  • “It is related to other means of social control that arise in communities, such as charivari, riding the rail, and tarring and feathering.”

    AlterNet.org Main RSS Feed

  • “charivari' under the windows on the wedding-night.”

    The Idiot

Show 10 more examples...

Log in or sign up to add your own related words.

synonyms (4)

Words with the same meaning

  1. shivaree
  1. callithump
  1. callathump
  1. skimmington

hypernyms (1)

Words that are more generic or abstract

  1. serenade

same context (9)

Words that are found in similar contexts

  1. beauty
  1. untowardness
  1. postmaster
  1. tripper
  1. intoxicant
  1. despoiler
  1. geezer
  1. 2008-07-02
  1. anodyne

reverse dictionary (8)

Words that contain this word in their definition

  1. lowbell
  1. chiravari
  1. callithump
  1. shivaree
  1. charivari
  1. callithumpian
  1. horn
  1. skimmington

tags (1)

Free-form, user-generated categorization

  1. filler

Log in or sign up to add your own tag.

Wordmap

(beta)

Word visualization

Lists

These user-created lists contain the word ‘charivari’.

More lists containing ‘charivari’

Comments

Log in or sign up to get involved in the conversation. It's quick and easy.

Tweets

Looking for tweets for charivari.

‘charivari’ has been looked up 2488 times, loved by 3 people, added to 30 lists, commented on 2 times, and has a Scrabble score of 17.