circus

Definitions

• A traveling company of performers that may include acrobats, clowns, trained animals, and other novelty acts, that gives shows usually in a circular tent.
• A round open space in a town or city where multiple streets meet.
• (figurative) A spectacle; a noisy fuss; a chaotic and/or crowded place.
• (historical) In the ancient Roman Empire, a building for chariot racing.
• (military) A code name for bomber attacks with fighter escorts in the day time. The attacks were against short-range targets with the intention of occupying enemy fighters and keeping their fighter units in the area concerned.
• (obsolete) Circuit; space; enclosure.