Merriam-Webster Collegiate Dictionary - circus

 noun  Usage: often attributive  Etymology: Middle English, from Latin, circle, ~ — more at circle  Date: 14th century  1.  a. a large arena enclosed by tiers of seats on three or all four sides and used especially for sports or spectacles (as athletic contests, exhibitions of horsemanship, or in ancient times chariot racing)  b. a public spectacle  2.  a. an arena often covered by a tent and used for variety shows usually including feats of physical skill, wild animal acts, and performances by clowns  b. a ~ performance  c. the physical plant, livestock, and personnel of such a ~  d. something suggestive of a ~ (as in frenzied activity, sensationalism, theatricality, or razzle-dazzle) a media ~  3.  a. obsolete circle, ring  b. British a usually circular area at an intersection of streets  • ~y adjective