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Roman holiday

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary

English

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Etymology

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From the gladiatorial contests of Ancient Rome.

Noun

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Roman holiday (plural Roman holidays)

  1. A form of public entertainment characterized by violence, degradation and suffering.
    • 1958, Saul Bellow, Henderson the Rain King:
      Two guys swung at each other's legs with whips, skipping into the air. Such Roman holiday high jinks were not reassuring to me.