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Stage 1 of 3
grottesca
Italian · 1400s-1500s
"of a cave, cave-like"
describing the fantastical paintings found in newly excavated Roman caves
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Stage 2 of 3
grotesque
French · 1500s
"fantastically decorated"
adopted for the strange, fantastical decorative style
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Stage 3 of 3
grotesque
English · 1500s-1600s
"strange, distorted, or unsettling"
broadened to mean bizarre or distorted
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