satire
[ sat-ahyuh r ]
/ ˈsæt aɪər /
noun
the use of irony, sarcasm, ridicule, or the like, in exposing, denouncing, or deriding vice, folly, etc.
a literary composition, in verse or prose, in which human folly and vice are held up to scorn, derision, or ridicule.
a literary genre comprising such compositions.
Origin of satire
1500–10; < Latin
satira, variant of
satura medley, perhaps feminine derivative of
satur sated (see
saturate)
SYNONYMS FOR satire
1 See
irony1.
2, 3 burlesque, caricature, parody, travesty.
Satire,
lampoon refer to literary forms in which vices or follies are ridiculed.
Satire, the general term, often emphasizes the weakness more than the weak person, and usually implies moral judgment and corrective purpose:
Swift's satire of human pettiness and bestiality.
Lampoon refers to a form of satire, often political or personal, characterized by the malice or virulence of its attack:
lampoons of the leading political figures.
OTHER WORDS FROM satire
non·sat·ire, nounWords nearby satire
satinet,
satinflower,
satinpod,
satinwood,
satiny,
satire,
satirical,
satirist,
satirize,
satisfaction,
satisfactory
Example sentences from the Web for satire
British Dictionary definitions for satire
satire
/ (ˈsætaɪə) /
noun
a novel, play, entertainment, etc, in which topical issues, folly, or evil are held up to scorn by means of ridicule and irony
the genre constituted by such works
the use of ridicule, irony, etc, to create such an effect
Word Origin for satire
C16: from Latin
satira a mixture, from
satur sated, from
satis enough
Cultural definitions for satire
satire
A work of literature that mocks social conventions, another work of art, or anything its author thinks ridiculous. Gulliver's Travels, by Jonathan Swift, is a satire of eighteenth-century British society.