burlesque
1 of 2noun
bur·lesque (ˌ)bər-ˈlesk 
1
literature : a literary or dramatic work that seeks to ridicule by means of grotesque exaggeration or comic imitation
a burlesque of Victorian society
2
: mockery usually by caricature
a writer whose burlesque often bordered on cruelty
3
: theatrical entertainment of a broadly humorous often earthy character consisting of short turns (see turn entry 2 sense 4d), comic skits, and sometimes striptease acts
performers who got their start in burlesque
burlesque adjective
burlesquely adverb
burlesque
2 of 2verb
burlesqued; burlesquing
transitive verb
: to imitate in a humorous or derisive manner : mock
a work burlesquing Sherlock Holmes
intransitive verb
: to employ burlesque
a temptation to burlesque
burlesquer noun
Synonyms
Noun
- caricature
- parody
- put-on
- rib
- send-up
- spoof
- takeoff
- travesty
Verb
- caricature
- do
- imitate
- mimic
- mock
- parody
- send up
- spoof
- travesty
See all Synonyms & Antonyms 
Example Sentences
Noun The book is a burlesque of Victorian society. a writer whose burlesque often bordered on cruelty Several important 20th-century performers got their start in burlesque. Verb burlesquing the teacher's nervous tic isn't very nice
Recent Examples on the Web
Adam Gopnik, The New Yorker, 21 July 2022 Chlöe’s detractors found the bump and grind of her choreography, reminiscent of Black burlesque, anywhere from concerning to downright disrespectful. Allure, 13 May 2022 This burlesque of rotten movies and overwrought acting excuses bad choices and lack of control through the dubious notion that audiences are superior to it all. Armond White, National Review, 22 Apr. 2022 Dollar bills flew and tassels twirled Friday, March 11, 2022, as The French Connection burlesque and variety show took the stage at the White Rabbit. Michelle Pemberton, The Indianapolis Star, 21 Apr. 2022 Their junior-high burlesque is a sight gag as well as the heart of the series; more literally than most teen pariahs, Maya and Anna have trouble fitting in. Rachel Syme, The New Yorker, 29 Nov. 2021 But many of the most splendid creations seen here are for drag and burlesque — gloves designed to be worn and then, finger by finger, flirtatiously removed. New York Times, 12 Aug. 2021 But the brilliant thing about online burlesque, Higgs told me, was that there was no bar. Madison Moore, The Atlantic, 26 July 2021 Reynolds points out that the shows displayed genuine pathos and nobility in addition to racist burlesque. Sean Wilentz, The New York Review of Books, 13 Apr. 2021 Kathy Cichon, chicagotribune.com, 27 Aug. 2020 See More
Noun
As this writer wrote once, Warhol showed us that the apotheosis and the burlesque of Whitman’s dream turned out to look more or less the same. Adam Gopnik, The New Yorker, 21 July 2022 Chlöe’s detractors found the bump and grind of her choreography, reminiscent of Black burlesque, anywhere from concerning to downright disrespectful. Allure, 13 May 2022 This burlesque of rotten movies and overwrought acting excuses bad choices and lack of control through the dubious notion that audiences are superior to it all. Armond White, National Review, 22 Apr. 2022 Dollar bills flew and tassels twirled Friday, March 11, 2022, as The French Connection burlesque and variety show took the stage at the White Rabbit. Michelle Pemberton, The Indianapolis Star, 21 Apr. 2022 Their junior-high burlesque is a sight gag as well as the heart of the series; more literally than most teen pariahs, Maya and Anna have trouble fitting in. Rachel Syme, The New Yorker, 29 Nov. 2021 But many of the most splendid creations seen here are for drag and burlesque — gloves designed to be worn and then, finger by finger, flirtatiously removed. New York Times, 12 Aug. 2021 But the brilliant thing about online burlesque, Higgs told me, was that there was no bar. Madison Moore, The Atlantic, 26 July 2021 Reynolds points out that the shows displayed genuine pathos and nobility in addition to racist burlesque. Sean Wilentz, The New York Review of Books, 13 Apr. 2021 Verb
Similar to past years, the festival will feature a variety of performances ranging from singers to storytellers, magic to mind reading and belly dancing to burlesque. Kathy Cichon, chicagotribune.com, 27 Aug. 2020 See More Word History
Etymology
Noun and Verb
burlesque, adjective, comic, droll, from French, from Italian burlesco, from burla joke, from Spanish
First Known Use
Noun
1667, in the meaning defined at sense 1
Verb
1676, in the meaning defined at transitive sense
burlesques 1 of 2
noun
as in parodies
a work that imitates and exaggerates another work for comic effect it is interesting to note that the first novel ever written in English was followed by a burlesque of it Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
- parodies
- spoofs
- satires
- send-ups
- caricatures
- imitations
- comedies
- put-ons
- travesties
- lampoons
- takeoffs
- ribs
- farces
- slapsticks
- sketches
- exaggerations
- distortions
- impersonations
- squibs
- mockeries
- humors
burlesques
2 of 2verb
as in mocks
to copy or exaggerate (someone or something) in order to make fun of burlesquing the teacher's nervous tic isn't very nice Synonyms & Similar Words
- parodies
- mocks
- imitates
- spoofs
- caricatures
- travesties
- does
- mimics
- ridicules
- lampoons
- satirizes
- plays
- sends up
- pantomimes
- gibes
- performs
- emulates
- jibes
- simulates
- pasquinades
- parrots
- reproduces
- apes
- personates
- mimes
- derides
- monkeys
- acts
- pretends
- copycats
- counterfeits
- shams
- embroiders
- duplicates
- replicates
- stretches
- feigns
- embellishes
- fakes
- exaggerates
- pads
- dissembles
- enhances
- elaborates
- overdraws
- plays up
- expands
- impersonates
- amplifies
- overstates
- magnifies
- puts on
- fleshes (out)
- enlarges (on or upon)