名詞 circus:

1. a travelling company of entertainers; including trained animals
2. performance given by a traveling company of acrobats clowns and trained animals
3. a frenetic disorganized (and often comic) disturbance suggestive of a large public entertainment
   同義詞：carnival
4. (antiquity) an open-air stadium for chariot races and gladiatorial games
5. an arena consisting of an oval or circular area enclosed by tiers of seats and usually covered by a tent
6. a genus of haws comprising the harriers
   同義詞：genus Circus

1. The fascinations of the circus are endless.
   馬戲表演非常吸引人。
2. He pleaded with his mother to allow him to go to the circus.
   他請(qǐng)求他母親答應(yīng)他去看馬戲。
3. The circus manager snapped his whip.
   馬戲團(tuán)主管把鞭子抽得很響。
4. He put up a poster advertising the circus.
   他貼了一張宣傳馬戲團(tuán)的海報(bào)。
5. The children watched entranced as the circus animals performed.
   馬戲團(tuán)的動(dòng)物們表演時(shí)，孩子們都看得入神。
6. The children are trying to persuade their mother to allow them to go to the circus.
   孩子們?cè)噲D說(shuō)服媽媽讓他們?nèi)タ瘩R戲。

cir.cus

n.（名詞）

A public entertainment consisting typically of a variety of performances by acrobats, clowns, and trained animals.
馬戲表演：一種公眾娛樂(lè)節(jié)目，通常由一系列高空雜技演員、小丑和馴獸的表演組成
A traveling company that performs such entertainments.
馬戲團(tuán)：表演馬戲的流動(dòng)團(tuán)體
A circular arena, surrounded by tiers of seats and often covered by a tent, in which such shows are performed.
圓形馬戲場(chǎng)：周圍圍繞著座位區(qū)的圓形場(chǎng)地，常覆有帳篷，表演在其中進(jìn)行
A roofless, oval enclosure surrounded by tiers of seats that was used in antiquity for public spectacles.
競(jìng)技場(chǎng)：座位區(qū)圍繞的無(wú)頂橢圓形場(chǎng)地，在古代用于公共活動(dòng)
Chiefly British An open circular place where several streets intersect.
【多用于英國(guó)】 圓形交叉口，露天圓形廣場(chǎng)：幾條街交匯處的開(kāi)放的圓形區(qū)域
Informal Something suggestive of a circus, as in frenetic activity or noisy disorder:
【非正式用語(yǔ)】 雜亂無(wú)章的事物：使人聯(lián)想到馬戲表演的事物，如在狂熱的活動(dòng)或喧嚷的混亂中：
例句：
.The city is a circus of the senses.(William H. Gass)
.城市是理念的競(jìng)技場(chǎng).(威廉H.加斯)

來(lái)源：
Middle English [round arena]
中古英語(yǔ) [圓形競(jìng)技場(chǎng)]
from Latin [circus, circle] * see circle
源自 拉丁語(yǔ) [環(huán)繞] *參見(jiàn) circle

【引伸】
cir.cusy
adj.（形容詞）
<注釋>The modern circus owes its name but fortunatelynot its regular program of events to the amusement of ancient times.The Latin wordcircus, which comes from the Greek word kirkos, .circle, ring,. referred to a circular or oval area enclosed by rows of seats for spectators.In the center ring, so to speak, was held a variety of events,including chariot races and gladiatorial combats, spectacles in which bloodshed and brutality were not uncommon.The first use ofcircus recorded in English, in a work by Chaucer written around 380,probably refers to the Circus Maximus in Rome.Our modern circus, which dates to the end of the 8th century,was originally an equestrian spectacle as well,but the trick riders were soon joined in the ring by such performers as ropedancers, acrobats, and jugglers.Even though the circular shape of the arena and the equestrian nature of some of the performances are carried over from its Roman namesake,the modern circus, despite occasional accidental violence,has little connection with its brutal namesake of long ago.
現(xiàn)代馬戲團(tuán)應(yīng)把它的名稱歸因于古時(shí)候的娛樂(lè)，值得慶幸地不是歸因于它的固定節(jié)目。拉丁文的circus 源于希臘文 kirkos .圓，環(huán).， 指被容納觀眾的座位圍起的圓形或橢圓形場(chǎng)地。在稱之為中央環(huán)地的場(chǎng)地中舉行多種表演，包括戰(zhàn)車賽跑和角斗，屠殺和殘暴的景象并不少見(jiàn)。英語(yǔ)中記錄的circus 的最早使用， 是在喬叟寫(xiě)于大約380年的一本著作里，可能意指羅馬的大競(jìng)技場(chǎng)?，F(xiàn)代馬戲團(tuán)可追溯到8世紀(jì)末，最初也是馬術(shù)表演，但走鋼絲演員、高空雜技演員和雜耍演員很快在圓形場(chǎng)地中加入特技騎手的行列。盡管馬戲場(chǎng)地的圓形形狀和一些表演的馬術(shù)實(shí)質(zhì)是由羅馬的同名物得到的，現(xiàn)代馬戲團(tuán)，盡管偶爾出現(xiàn)意外的暴力，與它久遠(yuǎn)以前殘暴的同名物幾乎沒(méi)有關(guān)聯(lián)