caricature
Americannoun
-
caricatures
plural
-
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)
-
caricatures,
present (3rd person singular)
-
caricatured,
past participle, past
-
caricaturing
present participle
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
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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
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
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:
Pattinson portrays Hansen as a caricature of himself, accentuating the journalist’s unmistakable vocal cadence to remove any distance between “To Catch a Predator” and the man behind the show.
From Salon ● Sep. 26, 2026
“Forget the tired caricature of Europe as a low-growth value trap,” said strategists led by Gerry Fowler.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 9, 2026
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
With her bright-eyed inquisitiveness bordering on tactlessness, and Harry Potter T-shirt, Cheryl-Ann comes close to being a caricature of a crass tourist, and is treated as such with cool disdain by Orla.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 25, 2026
To his credit, Baaz Mtombé certainly looked like the owner of a “spectacular” Night Zoo; everything about him seemed larger than life, like a caricature.
From "Beasts of Prey" by Ayana Gray
When Rosales writes about cholos, she disrupts caricatures.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 9, 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
There’s still plenty of eye rolling in China at caricatures of the U.S. presented by the propaganda apparatus.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 19, 2026
The lamps the riders carry illuminate the silhouettes of the dead, magicking them into lumbering caricatures of humanity.
From "Dread Nation" by Justina Ireland
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
Hegseth’s bravado has also been caricatured on “Saturday Night Live,” which opened two weeks in a row with a satirical portrayal of him as angry, dimwitted and hyped up on the violence of war.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 15, 2026
These giant, caricatured figures danced and moved through the ceremony alongside dancers and performers, offering a surreal, almost carnival-like nod to classical music’s place in Italian culture.
From Salon ● Feb. 6, 2026
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
Surratt, neither caricaturing nor condescending to Lot, is astonishing.
From New York Times ● Jun. 22, 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
Davies, the Newsday cartoonist, has enjoyed caricaturing Mike Bloomberg for years.
From Washington Post ● Feb. 15, 2020
I have to see the person I'm caricaturing or else I can't get them properly.
From Just Gerry by Christine Chaundler
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.
