carnival
n. C / Un. a big public festival with music, dancing, and colorful costumes in the street. You usually see these events held at the same time every year, often before a religious season.
n. a period of public celebration or revelry, typically involving processions, music, and masquerade. Often associated with the festive season immediately preceding Lent in Roman Catholic traditions.
The city streets are full of dancers during Carnival.
Local schools spend months preparing elaborate costumes and dance routines for the annual Carnival parade.
Sociologists often analyze Carnival as a period of ritual inversion, where social hierarchies are temporarily suspended through the use of masks and satirical performances.
Capitalized when referring to the specific festive season or a specific city's event; lowercase when used as a general synonym for a fair or traveling circus.