adj. & n.
--adj. (zanier, zaniest) comically idiotic; crazily ridiculous.
--n.
1. a buffoon or jester.
2 hist. an attendant clown awkwardly mimicking a chief clown in shows; a merry andrew.
Derivatives:
zanily adv. zaniness n.
Etymology: F zani or It. zan(n)i, Venetian form of Gianni, Giovanni John