sideshow
Americannoun
-
a minor show or exhibition in connection with a principal one, as at a circus.
-
any subordinate event or matter.
noun
-
a small show or entertainment offered in conjunction with a larger attraction, as at a circus or fair
-
a subordinate event or incident
Etymology
Origin of sideshow
An Americanism dating back to 1840–50
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
For decades, U.S. macroeconomic debates treated regulation as a sideshow—important for lawyers, lobbyists, and compliance officers but peripheral to the “real” drivers of economic performance, such as interest rates, deficits, and stimulus.
From Barron's
Some analysts say the vote is a sideshow.
From Barron's
Surrealism continues to fuel artists’ and viewers’ imaginations, but it has increasingly become art’s carnival sideshow.
But on Friday in Miami, that sideshow collides with boxing's top tier as Paul faces two-time heavyweight world champion and Olympic gold medallist Anthony Joshua.
From BBC
I feel like a sideshow attraction being led in on a leash.
From Literature
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
