an artistic composition, especially literary or dramatic, that, for the sake of laughter, vulgarizes lofty material or treats ordinary material with mock dignity.
any ludicrous parody or grotesque caricature.
Also bur·lesk . a humorous and provocative stage show featuring slapstick humor, comic skits, bawdy songs, striptease acts, and a scantily clad female chorus.
adjective
involving ludicrous or mocking treatment of a solemn subject.
of, relating to, or like stage-show burlesque.
verb (used with object),bur·lesqued,bur·lesquing.
to make ridiculous by mocking representation.
verb (used without object),bur·lesqued,bur·lesquing.
to use caricature.
Origin of burlesque
1650–60; <French <Italian burlesco, equivalent to burl(a) jest (perhaps <Spanish; cf. burladero) + -esco-esque
SYNONYMS FOR burlesque
1 satire, lampoon, farce.
SEE SYNONYMS FOR burlesque ON THESAURUS.COM
synonym study for burlesque
1. Burlesque,caricature,parody,travesty refer to the literary or dramatic forms that imitate serious works or subjects to achieve a humorous or satiric purpose. The characteristic device of burlesque is mockery of both high and low through association with their opposites: a burlesque of high and low life.Caricature, usually associated with visual arts or with visual effects in literary works, implies exaggeration of characteristic details: The caricature emphasized his nose.Parody achieves its humor through application of the manner or technique, usually of a well-known writer, to unaccustomed subjects: a parody by Swift.Travesty implies a grotesque form of burlesque: characters so changed as to produce a travesty.
Here, another writer says the burlesque model has got it right.
Dita Von Teese, My Breasts Are All Yours|Amanda Clayman|August 8, 2014|DAILY BEAST
He soon employs his new houseguest as a dancer in his burlesque theater and eventually pimps her out to select clients.
Cannes Diary: James Gray’s ‘The Immigrant,’ Starring Marion Cotillard, Shines|Richard Porton|May 25, 2013|DAILY BEAST
The day after this burlesque scene I returned to Padua, where Bettina soon made me forget the little ballet-girl.
The Memoires of Casanova, Complete|Jacques Casanova de Seingalt
But it was nothing to the burlesque which was shortly to be enacted on Orange River Station platform.
On the Heels of De Wet|The Intelligence Officer
Here was born, in 1630, the celebrated Charles Cotton, a burlesque poet of the seventeenth century.
Curiousities of Great Britain: England and Wales Delineated Vol. 1|Thomas Dugdale
Aside from his saddle and burlesque sombrero, he 89 looked every inch a puncher, both in dress and in bearing.
Out of the Depths|Robert Ames Bennet
I shall be able to relate the burlesque incident of my arrest, and the singular interview with which you honour me at present.
The Works of Robert Louis Stevenson - Swanston Edition Vol. 7 (of 25)|Robert Louis Stevenson
British Dictionary definitions for burlesque
burlesque
/ (bɜːˈlɛsk) /
noun
an artistic work, esp literary or dramatic, satirizing a subject by caricaturing it
a ludicrous imitation or caricature
a play of the 17th–19th centuries that parodied some contemporary dramatic fashion or event
Also: burleskUS and Canadiantheatrea bawdy comedy show of the late 19th and early 20th centuries: the striptease eventually became one of its chief elementsSlang name: burleycue
adjective
of, relating to, or characteristic of a burlesque
verb-lesques, -lesquingor-lesqued
to represent or imitate (a person or thing) in a ludicrous way; caricature
Derived forms of burlesque
burlesquer, noun
Word Origin for burlesque
C17: from French, from Italian burlesco, from burla a jest, piece of nonsense
Is It Naughty Or Not? What “Burlesque” Actually MeansDoes burlesque make you blush? Is it just a fancy word for striptease? As it turns out, burlesque derives from a rich tradition and a compelling meaning.