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menagerie

noun
me·​nag·​er·​ie | \ mÉ™-ˈnaj-rÄ“, -ˈna-jÉ™- How to pronounce menagerie (audio) also -ˈnazh-rÄ“, -ˈna-zhÉ™-\

Definition of menagerie

1a : a place where animals are kept and trained especially for exhibition
b : a collection of wild or foreign animals kept especially for exhibition
2 : a varied mixture a menagerie of comedians — TV Guide A menagerie of grotesque statues stood in the garden.
Synonyms Did You Know? More Example Sentences Learn More about menagerie

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Did You Know?

Back in the days of Middle French, ménagerie meant "the management of a household" or farm or "a place where animals are tended." By the 1670s, English speakers had adopted the word but dropped its housekeeping aspects, applying it specifically to the places where circuses and other exhibitions kept show animals. Later, the word was generalized to refer to any varied mixture, especially one that includes things that are strange or foreign to one's experience.

Examples of menagerie in a Sentence

a menagerie of rare creatures the living room is eclectically furnished with a menagerie of garage-sale finds

Recent Examples on the Web

 The walled compound featured several homes, gardens, pools, stables for Newton’s prized Arabian horses and a menagerie of exotic animals also including flamingos, penguins and even a sloth. — Washington Post, "Wayne Newton sued over monkey biting girl visiting his home," 9 Aug. 2019 The walled compound featured several homes, gardens, pools, stables for Newton’s prized Arabian horses and a menagerie of exotic animals also including flamingos, penguins and even a sloth. — Ken Ritter, BostonGlobe.com, "Wayne Newton sued over monkey biting girl visiting his home," 9 Aug. 2019 The walled compound featured several homes, gardens, pools, stables for Newton's prized Arabian horses and a menagerie of exotic animals also including flamingos, penguins and even a sloth. — Ken Ritter, chicagotribune.com, "Wayne Newton sued over monkey biting girl visiting his home," 9 Aug. 2019 The fossils come from the Burgess Shale, a formation that for more than a century has yielded a strange and world-famous menagerie living roughly 507 million years ago, during the first bloom of animal life on Earth. — Joshua Sokol, Science | AAAS, "‘Millennium Falcon’ predator soared across ocean floor at dawn of animal life," 30 July 2019 The girls disappeared into it to seek materials for their fairy houses — and to collect a menagerie of frogs, worms, and beetles. — Joshua Berman, The Know, "A nearby campground that you’ve probably driven past has hidden depths behind its trees," 26 July 2019 Over two decades, the zookeeper had built a menagerie on a 16-acre spread off the interstate in Oklahoma. — oregonlive.com, "The trouble with tigers in America," 13 July 2019 For the Birds Documentary about a rural woman whose large menagerie of chickens, ducks, turkeys and geese takes a toll on her personal life. — Matt Cooper, latimes.com, "L.A. movie openings, June 9-16: ‘The Dead Don’t Die,’ a Bob Dylan rock doc and more," 9 June 2019 Our family home in Woodbury, N.Y., was like a menagerie. — Marc Myers, WSJ, "Tracy Pollan on the Benefits of a ‘Flexitarian’ Diet," 4 June 2019

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'menagerie.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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First Known Use of menagerie

1676, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

History and Etymology for menagerie

French ménagerie, from Middle French, management of a household or farm, from menage

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More Definitions for menagerie

menagerie

noun
How to pronounce menagerie (audio)

English Language Learners Definition of menagerie

: a collection of animals kept especially to be shown to the public

See the full definition for menagerie in the English Language Learners Dictionary

menagerie

noun
me·​nag·​er·​ie | \ mÉ™-ˈna-jÉ™-rÄ“ How to pronounce menagerie (audio) \

Kids Definition of menagerie

: a collection of wild animals kept especially to be shown to the public

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More from Merriam-Webster on menagerie

Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for menagerie

Spanish Central: Translation of menagerie

Nglish: Translation of menagerie for Spanish Speakers

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about menagerie

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