harlequin
noun
[ ˈhɑːlɪkwɪn ]
• a mute character in traditional pantomime, typically masked and dressed in a diamond-patterned costume.
• a small duck of fast-flowing streams around the Arctic and North Pacific, the male having mainly grey-blue plumage with bold white markings.
harlequin
adjective
• in varied colours; variegated.
Similar:
varicoloured,
variegated,
colourful,
particoloured,
multicoloured,
multicolour,
many-coloured,
many-hued,
rainbow,
jazzy,
kaleidoscopic,
psychedelic,
polychromatic,
chequered,
motley,
Origin:
late 16th century: from obsolete French, from earlier Herlequin (or Hellequin ), the name of the leader of a legendary troop of demon horsemen; perhaps ultimately related to Old English Herla cyning ‘King Herla’, a mythical figure sometimes identified with Woden.
