buffoonery

[ buh-foo-nuh-ree ]

noun

1. amusement by means of usually physical or visual tricks, jokes, etc.:

   The play swings from absurd buffoonery to high tragedy, with kinetic physicality, silliness, swords, and live music.

2. coarse or undignified joking:

   The managers perceived my buffoonery as a barely concealed way of calling them pretentious—and they weren’t altogether wrong.

3. silly, foolish, or unseemly behavior:

   It’s hard to top the current governor's race if you like your politics laced with outrageous buffoonery.

Word History and Origins

Origin of buffoonery¹

buffoon ( def ) + -ery ( def )

Example Sentences

O’Neill captures the buffoonery to a large extent but seems a touch more jovial than the man he portrays.

From Los Angeles Times

And it is that comedic timing, buffoonery and utter disregard for social norms and human decency that are central to his political power and appeal.

From Salon

The director Tina Landau, a longtime collaborator, embraces that buffoonery, almost to a fault.

From New York Times

The Iowa senator named the Pelosi Building the winner of her “Squeal Award,” a designation she doles out every month to an example of the government’s bungling buffoonery.

From Washington Times

The capsule was not lost through cartoonish buffoonery, but through an almost cinematic series of events.

From New York Times

Related Words

• caricature
• contempt
• derision
• disdain
• jeer
• laughter
• mockery
• parody
• sarcasm
• satire
• scorn
• taunt
• taunting