sideshow

noun

side·​show ˈsīd-ˌshō How to pronounce sideshow (audio)
1
: a minor show offered in addition to a main exhibition (as of a circus)
2
: an incidental diversion or spectacle

Examples of sideshow in a Sentence

Their disagreement is just a political sideshow when compared to the real issues at hand.
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
The conversation around Emilia Pérez has come to focus on the awards-campaign sideshow, and not at all on the movie’s theoretical merits. — Mike Pearl, The Atlantic, 2 Mar. 2025 He had originally been charged with murder for the October 2009 fatal shooting of a 23-year-old man during a sideshow in East Oakland, but pleaded no contest to the lesser charge and received a seven-year prison sentence, according to court records. — Jakob Rodgers, The Mercury News, 22 Feb. 2025 Initially, theater houses exhibited short clips in dingy rooms and were considered little more than two-bit sideshows. — Hannah Fish, The Christian Science Monitor, 18 Feb. 2025 Editor’s picks Making of an Empire The story of how a president of the United States wound up cage-side in Madison Square Garden that night is also the story of MMA, a sport that over the past 30 years has gone from being a late-night cable TV sideshow to a new American pastime. — Jack Crosbie, Rolling Stone, 14 Jan. 2025 See All Example Sentences for sideshow

Word History

First Known Use

1846, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of sideshow was in 1846

Rhymes for sideshow

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Browse Nearby Words

sideshow
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Cite this Entry

“Sideshow.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sideshow. Accessed 25 Mar. 2025.

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Kids Definition

sideshow

noun
side·​show -ˌshō How to pronounce sideshow (audio)
: a small show off to the side offered in addition to a main show (as of a circus)

More from Merriam-Webster on sideshow

Nglish: Translation of sideshow for Spanish Speakers

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about sideshow

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