Gro*tesque" (gr?*tĕsk"), 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.
Gro*tesque, n. 1.
A whimsical figure, or scene, such as is found in old crypts and
grottoes. Dryden.
2. Artificial grotto-work.