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
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caricaturistnoun
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self-caricaturenoun
-
caricaturableadjective
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caricaturaladjective
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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
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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:
He has less patience for commentators who seek to debunk originalism by measuring its practitioners against a caricature of the method.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 7, 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
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
He said the pair had an "agreeable" conversation, adding he did not agree with Vance's "caricature" of Western civilisation and its perceived decline.
From BBC ● Jun. 7, 2026
She stared at the framed caricature of Dike that hung on her wall, Dike’s ears comically pointed, and wondered what Obinze was feeling.
From "Americanah" by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
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
Characters are caricatures, be it a villain that feels plucked from a cartoon western, complete with a purring raccoon for a sidekick, to a greedy wannabe politician of a bank manager.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 17, 2026
The exhibition includes examples of his illustrations for the journal Oxford Left, as well as some amusing caricatures of his aristocratic classmates.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 26, 2026
Sean pulled out a chart with caricatures he had drawn of every member of the varsity and JV basketball teams.
From "Here to Stay" by Sara Farizan
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
But in this case, critics and social media users from Kerala and beyond have called out the film for its caricatured depiction of the state, particularly Sundari.
From BBC ● Sep. 5, 2025
The best man’s speech can provide a caricatured instance of decorum misfiring.
From "Words Like Loaded Pistols" by Sam Leith
In a different sequence, our ensemble characters take turns reading an online screed caricaturing billionaires as yacht-bound playboys.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 13, 2023
By 2017, Saturday Night Live was caricaturing Ms Trump in a mock advertisement for a perfume called "Complicit."
From BBC ● Nov. 7, 2023
They’re dressed in drag — even mustaches — caricaturing their male detractors.
From New York Times ● Apr. 6, 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
Perhaps he may have been caricaturing "the ingenious gentleman" of La Mancha.
From Romantic Spain A Record of Personal Experiences (Vol. I) by John Augustus O'Shea
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.
