Pierrot vs. Clown — What's the Difference?

Pierrot ( PEER-oh, US also PEE-ə-roh, PEE-ə-ROH, French: [pjɛʁo] (listen)) is a stock character of pantomime and commedia dell'arte whose origins are in the late seventeenth-century Italian troupe of players performing in Paris and known as the Comédie-Italienne; the name is a diminutive of Pierre (Peter), via the suffix -ot. His character in contemporary popular culture—in poetry, fiction, and the visual arts, as well as works for the stage, screen, and concert hall—is that of the sad clown, often pining for love of Columbine, who usually breaks his heart and leaves him for Harlequin.

A clown is a person who wears a unique makeup-face and flamboyant costume, performing comedy in a state of open-mindedness (by reversing folkway-norms) all while using physical comedy.

A character in French pantomime, dressed in a floppy white outfit.

A comic entertainer, especially one in a circus, wearing a traditional costume and exaggerated make-up

Alternative form of Pierrot

An unsophisticated country person; a rustic.

Any of various lycaenid butterflies of the genera Tarucus and Castalia, notable for white contrasting with brown or black on the underwings.

Behave in a comical or playful way

(historical) An 18th-century women's low-cut basque with sleeves.

A buffoon or jester who entertains by jokes, antics, and tricks in a circus, play, or other presentation.

A male character in French pantomime; usually dressed in white with a whitened face

One who jokes and plays tricks.

A coarse, rude, vulgar person; a boor.

A peasant; a rustic.

To behave like a buffoon or jester.

To perform as a buffoon or jester.

To krump, especially in clown makeup.

A slapstick performance artist often associated with a circus and usually characterized by bright, oversized clothing, a red nose, face paint, and a brightly colored wig.

A person who acts in a silly fashion.

A stupid or badly-behaved person.

(obsolete) A man of coarse nature and manners; an awkward fellow; an illbred person; a boor.

(obsolete) One who works upon the soil; a rustic; a churl; a yokel.

A clownfish.

To act in a silly or playful fashion.

To ridicule.

A man of coarse nature and manners; an awkward fellow; an ill-bred person; a boor.

One who works upon the soil; a rustic; a churl.

The fool or buffoon in a play, circus, etc.

To act as a clown; - with it.

A rude or vulgar fool

A person who amuses others by ridiculous behavior

Act as or like a clown