What does motley mean in poetry?

Using the word “ motley in a poem can refer to a group of people who seem to be from different places. Like the patches of color on a clown’s outfit, the motley appearance of the group implies that the people are part of an otherwise normal group but that they all have different colors.

What does motley mean in Italian?

The use of the term “ motley to describe a group of people makes its way into English from Italian. The word “motley” comes from the Italian term “motiglieta” which means “a mixture”. The word first appears in Italian literature in the 16th century, where it meant a group of people who looked different from one another, often because of their attire.

What does motley mean in Spanish and English?

The word motley comes from the Italian word motti, meaning patches or outfits. These patches were sewn together for jesters, traveling performers, and, later, to represent the motley crew of the lower classes. A motley group is one that is made up of people of different ages, races, and genders, and whose appearance is of little consequence or value. The word was used in a negative way to refer to a group of people of little consequence or value.

What does motley mean in Spanish?

The word motley is used more often to describe attire rather than describe a group of people. Specifically, it refers to the garb of a jester, that is, a person who used to wear a motley costume that included brightly colored patches sewn onto a piece of long, loose, flowing material. A person wearing a motley outfit was often a target for jests and jokes.

What does motley mean in Latin?

The word motley originally referred to a patchwork garment. Over time it came to mean jumbled or odd-looking; by the 16th century it was being used to describe a group of people of different social classes that seem to be thrown together.