barnstorm means A series of appearances in small country towns, as by a politician or a travelling theatre group. Lexicurio rates it Sui generis — a strength score of 89 out of 100.
Why this word is great
BARNSTORM — [Verb] To tour rural areas, especially to give theatrical performances or political speeches, often in improvised venues. From barn (an agricultural building) + storm (to attack or rush violently), alluding to performers 'storming' through rural districts and using barns as stages. Unlike a formal “tour” (which implies booked halls and printed programs) or a methodical “canvass” (which proceeds door-to-door), to barnstorm is to conjure spectacle from sheer will and local materials. It is the scent of gasoline and sawdust as a biplane lands in a pasture, the percussive thump of a candidate’s fist on a flatbed truck, and the slapstick of a tumbling comedian on a stage of warped barn planks—a fleeting, earnest magic performed against the vast, indifferent quiet of the land.
noun
- A series of appearances in small country towns, as by a politician or a travelling theatre group.
verb
- To travel around the countryside making political speeches etc.“A pair of red boxing gloves dangles in the cabin of John N. Turner's plane as he barnstorms across Canada campaigning for the general election Nov. 21.”
- To appear at fairs and carnivals in exhibitions of stunt flying, sporting events, or theater.
- To travel from town to town performing in front of small crowds.“He also noted that “we’re in the business of promoting the game” in the United States, which is a task surely helped by the national team’s barnstorming persona.”