grotesque – English adjective declension

English adjective forms of grotesque

Adjective: grotesque

Comparison Forms

Synthetic

Comparativegrotesquer
Superlativegrotesquest

Perifrastic

Comparativemore grotesque
Superlativemost grotesque

Sample Sentences

  • The chimney-piece was of party-coloured marble, covered with figures, some of whose faces were beautiful, but generally running off into those grotesque combinations which characterised the peculiar taste of their time. [1834, L[etitia] E[lizabeth] L[andon], chapter XV, in Francesca Carrara. […], volume III, London: Richard Bentley, […], (successor to Henry Colburn), →OCLC, page 114:]
  • A Libyan longing took us, and we would have chosen, if we could, to bear a strand of grotesque beads, or a handful of brazen gauds, and traffic them for some sable maid with crisp locks, whom, uncoffling from the captive train beside the desert, we should make to do our general housework forever, through the right of lawful purchase. [1912, The World's Wit and Humor, page 176:]
  • Some of the vehicles are, indeed, taxis, but all of them are unoccupied, and most have their doors left open. There are colossally tall darkened figures stalking down the streets, so dark and slender that Wheeler actually fails to notice them. There is screaming, a grotesque, awful screaming coming from many human mouths, coming from somewhere down the main road. But that's the only way he can go. [2019 April 10, qntm, “CASE HATE RED”, in There Is No Antimemetics Division, →ISBN, page 141:]
  • Trump’s grotesque and incomprehensible fondness for Putin makes the details of any deal highly dangerous for Europe and the NATO alliance, founded to confront Russia. [2024 November 9, Nick Paton Walsh, “Trump’s second term could bring chaos around the world. Will it work?”, in CNN:]

Adjectives inflected like grotesque

serene, severe, secure, sedate, wheelie, simple, complete, fulsome, sprightlie, discrete, plosive, bizarre, brusque, brittle, wholesome, sincere, shystie, loveable, prophane, terrible, etc. (List truncated at 20 adjectives)

Etymology

1. Etymology tree
2. Ancient Greek κρύπτω (krúptō)
3. Ancient Greek κρυπτή (kruptḗ)bor.
4. Latin crypta
5. Italian grotta
6. Proto-Indo-European *-iskos
7. Proto-Germanic *-iskaz
8. Proto-West Germanic *-iskbor.
9. Vulgar Latin -iscus
10. Italian -esco
11. Italian grottescobor.
12. Middle French grotesquebor.
13. English grotesque
14. Borrowed from Middle French grotesque, from Italian grottesco, from grotta (“cave”) + -esco (relational suffix). By surface analysis, grotto + -esque. Compare French grotesque, English grotto. See: Italian Adjectives 'grottesco', French Adjectives 'grotesque'.