Antonyms for zany

Grammar : Adj, noun

Spell : zey-nee

Phonetic Transcription : ˈzeɪ ni

Definition of zany

Origin : comic performer, 1580s, from French zani, from Italian zani, zanni "a zany, clown," originally Zanni, Venetian dialect variant of Gianni, pet form of Giovanni "John." A stock character in old comedies, he aped the principal actors.

adj crazy, funny
noun person who is wildly funny

Example sentences :

In the zany we see an example of creation; in the humorist, of transmission.
Extract from : « The Devil's Dictionary » by Ambrose Bierce

The zany was progenitor to the specialist in humor, as we to-day have the unhappiness to know him.
Extract from : « The Devil's Dictionary » by Ambrose Bierce

They sometimes acted the part of a fool or zany (morio), or of a madman.
Extract from : « A History of Caricature and Grotesque » by Thomas Wright

The explanation of it was that the Shawanoe was a zany or lunatic.
Extract from : « Blazing Arrow » by Edward S. Ellis

Boswell's Tour of the Hebrides was "the story of a mountebank and his zany."
Extract from : « The London Mercury, Vol. I, Nos. 1-6, November 1919 to April 1920 » by Various

It remains to discover why “the Preacher” became “the Zany.”
Extract from : « Calamities and Quarrels of Authors » by Isaac Disraeli

So I simply informed Pomponne that he was a zany, and left the house.
Extract from : « Frdrique; vol. 1 » by Charles Paul de Kock

Zany left a large circle of sorrowing friends, if not relatives.
Extract from : « The Story of a Bad Boy » by Thomas Bailey Aldrich

When the zany in the pantomime hides the red-hot poker in his pocket, he cauterizes his person.
Extract from : « Harper's New Monthly Magazine, Vol. 2, No. 8, January, 1851 » by Various

ZANY, an inferior clown, who attended upon the chief fool and mimicked his tricks.
Extract from : « Volpone; Or, The Fox » by Ben Jonson

Synonyms for zany

Based on : Thesaurus.com - Gutenberg.org - Dictionary.com - Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019