a gentle jester, the cartoonist more often tries to evoke a broad smile than a hearty guffaw
the king called for some much-needed entertainment from his jester
Recent Examples on the WebClad head-to-toe in black, needy and needling, and most crucially a truth-teller in a world of polite lies and shallow eruptions, Lewis was a specter haunting the show, its dark jester and, in many ways, its conscience.—Boris Kachka, Washington Post, 29 Feb. 2024 In the Old World, royalty had jesters and favored court composers and painters while the Vatican showered wealth and fame on Michelangelo, Caravaggio and Raphel among others.—Doug McIntyre, Orange County Register, 25 Feb. 2024 Stewart himself is one of the few who’s managed to serve as both jester and oracle: a figure who can channel the truth and entertain us while doing it.—Inkoo Kang, The New Yorker, 13 Feb. 2024 In the performance at the now-defunct Club Lingerie on Sunset Boulevard, the band’s bassist was dressed as a jester, the drummer wore a demon mask and a horn player was dressed as a carrot.—Hailey Branson-Potts, Los Angeles Times, 5 Jan. 2024 Stilt-walking harlequins, leaping court jesters, gladiators, riders on horseback, harem girls, and more descended upon the courtyard followed by a gilded carriage carrying five statuesque ladies dripping in jewels.—Paige Reddinger, Robb Report, 12 Nov. 2023 Entrepreneurial huckster Vivek Ramaswamy has graduated from being the court jester of corporate governance to now becoming a serious contender for the GOP presidential nomination as some 5% of primary Republican voters indicate they are entertained by his antics.—Jeffrey Sonnenfeld, Fortune, 31 Aug. 2023 Friends was the king of prime time and Perry its court jester, a floppy-haired virtuoso of sarcasm and comic timing, but his 28-day stint in Hazelden for Vicodin, splashed across gossip rags, told a darker tale, one that would outlast his TV show’s long run.—Sarah Hepola, Rolling Stone, 31 Oct. 2023 These are prerequisites for court jesters, not journalists.—Armond White, National Review, 13 Oct. 2023
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'jester.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
Etymology
Middle English gestour "reciter of romances, minstrel, entertainer," from gesten "to recite romances" + -our-er entry 2 — more at jest entry 2
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