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Meaning of spectacle | Babel Free

Noun CEFR C2 Standard
ˈspɛktəkl̩

Definitions

  1. number (counting)
  2. An exciting or extraordinary scene, exhibition, performance etc.
  3. musical number
  4. An embarrassing or unedifying scene or situation.
  5. number
  6. Attributive form of spectacles.
    attributive, form-of
  7. The brille of a snake.
  8. man, soldier
  9. A frame with different coloured lenses on a semaphore signal through which light from a lamp shines at night, often a part of the signal arm.

Equivalents

Examples

“The horse race was a thrilling spectacle.”
“VVith ſcoffes and ſcornes, and contumelious taunts, / In open Market-place produc't they me, / To be a publique ſpectacle to all: / Here, ſayd they, is the Terror of the French, / The Scar-Crovv that affrights our Children ſo.”
“22 March 2012, Scott Tobias, AV Club The Hunger Gameshttp://www.avclub.com/articles/the-hunger-games,71293/ In movie terms, it suggests Paul Verhoeven in Robocop/Starship Troopers mode, an R-rated bloodbath where the grim spectacle of children murdering each other on television is bread-and-circuses for the age of reality TV, enforced by a totalitarian regime to keep the masses at bay.”
“He made a spectacle out of himself.”
“Some very interesting relics of Adam and Eve were shown us, that were brought from America; such as a fine-tooth comb, made of thorns, a part of a pair of leather spectacle frames, without glasses, a boot jack made of ebony, and a set of pawpaws of props, with the backs filled with a hard substance, resembling lava.”

CEFR level

C2
Mastery
This word is part of the CEFR C2 vocabulary — mastery level.
See all C2 English words →

See also

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