caricature
Americannoun
-
a picture, description, etc., ludicrously exaggerating the peculiarities or defects of persons or things.
His caricature of the mayor in this morning's paper is the best he's ever drawn.
- Synonyms:
- cartoon
-
the art or process of producing such pictures, descriptions, etc.
-
any imitation or copy so distorted or inferior as to be ludicrous.
- Synonyms:
- travesty
verb (used with object)
noun
-
a pictorial, written, or acted representation of a person, which exaggerates his characteristic traits for comic effect
-
a ludicrously inadequate or inaccurate imitation
he is a caricature of a statesman
verb
Synonym Usage
See burlesque.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
-
caricaturistnoun
-
self-caricaturenoun
-
caricaturableadjective
-
caricaturaladjective
-
semicaricaturaladjective
-
uncaricaturedadjective
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
caricaturesimple
-
caricaturessimple
-
have caricaturedperfect
-
has caricaturedperfect
-
am caricaturingprogressive
-
are caricaturingprogressive
-
is caricaturingprogressive
-
have been caricaturingperfect progressive
-
has been caricaturingperfect progressive
Past
-
caricaturedsimple
-
had caricaturedperfect
-
was caricaturingprogressive
-
were caricaturingprogressive
-
had been caricaturingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of caricature
1740–50; earlier caricatura < Italian, equivalent to caricat(o) loaded, i.e., distorted (past participle of caricare; see charge) + -ura -ure
Explanation
A caricature is a satirical, exaggerated portrayal of a person. You'd better not caricature your father by walking bent-over and speaking in his high voice. If he catches you, you'll be in trouble! An exaggeration of a person's character results in a caricature. While this might help you to remember its meaning, don't let the spelling confuse you. Character has an "h" but caricature does not. If you're so excited about something that you feel a little out of control, you might seem like a caricature of yourself to your friends. You can use this word as a verb too. Presidents and other prominent politicians are often caricatured in political cartoons.
Vocabulary lists containing caricature
Literary Devices & Figures of Speech - Introductory
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"To Kill a Mockingbird" by Harper Lee, Chapters 7–11
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100 SAT words Beginning with "C"
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
The assemblage turned the damaging caricature into a revolutionary hero, and made Saar a star of the Black Arts movement.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 28, 2026
Like all of those after-school specials, there’s a distinct element of gratitude that helps the film transcend accusations of corniness or caricature.
From Salon ● Jun. 22, 2026
For the LFI's Fourreau, the banquets are "backward-looking – a caricature".
From BBC ● Jun. 6, 2026
“We believe the public should understand the full person we know, not a caricature built from a few clips on a bad day.”
From Los Angeles Times ● May 11, 2026
“Dare not?” shouted Sir Lancelot, and he went into the darkness staggering, laughing like a caricature, and calling for his horse.
From "The Once and Future King" by T. H. White
Skrepetsky was known for his caricatures of Vladimir Putin and other prominent Russians, many of them Kremlin-linked.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 18, 2026
He was known for his caricatures of politicians, including Putin, Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko and Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov.
From BBC ● Jun. 16, 2026
Their testimonials on our website demonstrate that they are real, complex human beings, not caricatures.
From Salon ● Jun. 8, 2026
There’s a tension between the update’s good intentions and the tendency of musical comedy to traffic in amusing caricatures.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 20, 2026
After that, a local Bled newspaper published a group of caricatures of all eight players, and a souvenir postcard was made of the drawings.
From "Endgame" by Frank Brady
All of the king’s men were experienced soldiers; none were fools or the moronic redcoats so often caricatured in American mythology.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 26, 2026
"Magyar will want, as he did during the campaign, not to be caricatured as being a pawn of Brussels; do not expect him to say yes to everything," said an EU diplomat.
From Barron's ● Apr. 13, 2026
Shock horror in a political campaign, you'll be amazed that the two women have both been caricatured.
From BBC ● Oct. 11, 2025
“Who can identify with a caricatured mob dancing in idiot ecstasy to greet the extraterrestrials?,”
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 10, 2025
The way American newspapers caricatured his portly build and bald head, portraying him like some stubby supervillain sprung from the pages of one of their ludicrous comic books.
From "Fallout: Spies, Superbombs, and the Ultimate Cold War Showdown" by Steve Sheinkin
By 2017, Saturday Night Live was caricaturing Ms Trump in a mock advertisement for a perfume called "Complicit."
From BBC ● Nov. 7, 2023
“But what we’re doing here is showing the context of events — not just caricaturing each candidate.”
From New York Times ● Apr. 19, 2022
“But I promise you that dismissing or caricaturing these kinds of voters — our fellow citizens — is not the way to win them back. And there’s no path to victory without winning them back.”
From Seattle Times ● Nov. 24, 2021
The picture trivializes Joseph Beuys, caricaturing the best known of the European Fluxus artists just around the time of Fluxus’ beginning.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 17, 2019
She would agree with him in his attacks upon others, second his vicious caricaturing and appear always impressed by his desperate skepticism.
From Gargoyles by Hecht, Ben
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
