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clowning around

NOUN

monkey business

Synonyms

WEAK

absurdity absurdness antics buffoonery carrying-on craziness disobedience foolery foolishness hanky-panky high jinks hokey-pokey horse feathers horseplay inanity insanity irresponsibility ludicrousness lunacy misbehavior mischief mischief-making monkeyshine nonsense poppycock prank silliness stupidity tommyrot

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

But too much clowning around might not look so smart.

From BBC • Sep. 20, 2025

Living up to her designation as “the Internet’s favorite rich auntie,” Ross keeps her Instagram followers well fed with endless glamour and lots of clowning around.

From Salon • Aug. 3, 2025

When not clowning around on the stage or screen, Mr. Storch was party to an unusual secret at home.

From New York Times • Jul. 8, 2022

The Wayans with the most range when it comes to acting and clowning around takes the stage in between whatever massive projects he’s working on to keep his stand-up muscles strong.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 24, 2022

But Owen had been so busy clowning around to get George to lighten up that he’d forgotten to grab the shotgun from the snowmobile.

From "Two Degrees" by Alan Gratz

clowning around

Example Sentences

Related Words