spectacle
NounUS[spek-tuh-kuhl]/ˈspɛktəkəl/3 syllables
Open English WordNet
Noun (3)spectacles
- something or someone seen (especially a notable or unusual sight)“the tragic spectacle of cripples trying to escape”Type of sight
- an elaborate and remarkable display on a lavish scaleType of display, presentationKinds naumachy, bullfight
- a blunder that makes you look ridiculous; used in the phrase ‘make a spectacle of’ yourselfType of blunder, blooper
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Webster's Dictionary (1913)
Spec′ta·cle noun
Origin: F., fr. L. spectaculum, fr. spectare to look at, to behold, v. intens. fr. specere. See Spy.
1. Something exhibited to view; usually, something presented to view as extraordinary, or as unusual and worthy of special notice; a remarkable or noteworthy sight; a show; a pageant; a gazingstock.
O, piteous spectacle? O, bloody times!— William Shakespeare
2. A spy-glass; a looking-glass. obsolete
Poverty a spectacle is, as thinketh me, Through which he may his very friends see.— Geoffrey Chaucer
3. pl. An optical instrument consisting of two lenses set in a light frame, and worn to assist sight, to obviate some defect in the organs of vision, or to shield the eyes from bright light.
4. pl. Fig.: An aid to the intellectual sight.
Shakespeare... needed not the spectacles of books to read nature.— John Dryden
Synonyms: Show; sight; exhibition; representation; pageant.
Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913), from GCIDE 0.54