Advertisement

Advertisement

antimasque

[ an-ti-mask ]

noun

  1. a comic or grotesque performance, as a dance, presented before or between the acts of a masque.


antimasque

/ ˈæntɪˌmɑːsk /

noun

  1. a comic or grotesque dance, presented between the acts of a masque
“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Discover More

Other Words From

  • an·ti·mas·quer an·ti·mask·er noun
Discover More

Word History and Origins

Origin of antimasque1

First recorded in 1600–10; anti- + masque; replacing antemask; ante-, mask
Discover More

Example Sentences

These gallant Templars were accompanied by the finest band of picked musicians that London could afford, and were followed by the antimasque of beggars and cripples, who were mounted on “the poorest, leanest jades that could be gotten out of the dirt-carts.”

After the beggars’ antimasque came a band of pipes, whistles, and instruments, sounding notes like those of birds, of all sorts, in excellent harmony; and these ushered in “the antimasque of birds,” which consisted of an owl in an ivy bush, with innumerable other birds in a cluster about the owl, gazing upon her.

Then came a wild, harsh band of northern music, bagpipes, horns, &c., followed by the “antimasque of projectors,” who were in turn succeeded by a string of chariots drawn by four horses abreast, filled with “gods and goddesses,” and preceded by heathen priests.

Antimask, Antimasque, an′ti-mask, n. a ridiculous interlude dividing the parts of the more serious mask.

Jonson's Masque of Oberon, produced January 1, 1611, contains an antimasque of satyrs which may bear some relation to the similar dance in IV, iv, 331 ff.

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement


Anti-Masonic partyantimatter