comedian

The word “comedian” means a performer who entertains audiences with jokes and humor. In plain terms, someone who makes people laugh, either as a job (stand-up, TV) or just by nature.

“Comedian” is pronounced kuh-MEE-dee-uhn (/kəˈmiː.di.ən/ in IPA).

Here is “comedian” used in a sentence: “The comedian had the whole crowd laughing within minutes.”

Words with a similar meaning to “comedian” include funnyman and funnywoman.

“Comedian” is a noun.

The word “comedian” comes from Ancient Greek. From French comédien, ultimately from Ancient Greek komoidia ("comedy").

“Comedian” is a fairly common word in modern English, usually learned at around the B1 level.

“Comedian” has 2 distinct senses listed in this dictionary. The most common is: a performer who entertains audiences with jokes and humor.

The two are largely interchangeable for a performer who entertains with jokes and humour. 'Comic' can additionally serve as an adjective meaning funny, whereas 'comedian' is used only as a noun for the performer.

Traditionally, 'comedian' referred to a male performer and 'comedienne' to a female one, following an older convention of using a separate feminine form. Today 'comedian' is widely used for performers of any gender, and the gendered 'comedienne' has become less common.

Yes. Besides meaning a professional performer, 'comedian' can describe a person who is naturally funny whether or not they perform for a living. In this sense it is used loosely, sometimes admiringly and sometimes sarcastically, as in 'everyone's a comedian.'

No. 'Stand-up comedian' specifies the format in which the performer works alone on stage delivering jokes directly to an audience. Because the base word 'comedian' covers any performer who entertains with humour, the 'stand-up' label adds useful detail.