Gro*tesque" (grO*tesk"), a. [F., fr. It. grottesco, fr. grotta grotto. See Grotto.]
Like the figures found in ancient grottoes; grottolike; wildly or strangely formed; whimsical; extravagant; of irregular forms and proportions; fantastic; ludicrous; antic. "Grotesque design." Dryden. "Grotesque incidents." Macaulay.
© Webster 1913
Gro*tesque, n.
1.
A whimsical figure, or scene, such as is found in old crypts and grottoes. Dryden.
2.
Artificial grotto-work.
© Webster 1913