send-up
noun
an entertaining or humorous burlesque or parody; takeoff.
send-up
American
[send-uhp]
/ ˈsɛndˌʌp /
Or
sendup
noun
send up
British
verb
-
slang to send to prison
-
informal to make fun of, esp by doing an imitation or parody of
he sent up the teacher marvellously
noun
send up
Idioms
-
Put in prison, as in He'll be sent up for at least ten years . [Mid-1800s]
-
Cause to rise, as in The emissions sent up by that factory are clearly poisonous . [Late 1500s]
-
Satirize, make a parody of, as in This playwright has a genius for sending up suburban life . [First half of 1900s]
-
send up a trial balloon . See trial balloon .
Etymology
Origin of send-up
First recorded in 1955–60; noun use of verb phrase send up, in sense “to parody”; compare earlier Brit. academic usage “to mock, scoff at”
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:
A multi-billion dollar cartoon franchise is a strange place to find a send-up of silent films, but “Minions & Monsters” does just that.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 6, 2026
In the clip, a send-up of Barkley’s heartfelt comments on immigrants during a post-game show, Kenan Thompson as Barkley offered his thoughts on betting platforms, Artemis II and former Attorney General Pam Bondi.
From Salon ● Apr. 5, 2026
Set in the buttoned-up town of Fallwell, Massachusetts, it’s a fizzy send-up of small-town sanctimony and monster-movie melodrama.
From Salon ● Oct. 27, 2025
On the comedy side, the most honors went to the Apple TV+ Hollywood send-up “The Studio,” with four wins during the telecast, including outstanding comedy series.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 15, 2025
A horse hitched to the end of the chain hauls up the log, which is guided by the "send-up men" with their cant-hooks.
From Handwork in Wood by William Noyes
“Too often a place will just send up a cardboard shopping bag with the things you ordered in it.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 16, 2026
Who came up with the idea of using your red carpet appearances to send up celebrity culture?
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 12, 2026
"It's going to impact and its going to send up a huge plume of dust, maybe 50km into the air or more, and that's going to spread sideways over time," Bothwell said.
From BBC ● Aug. 4, 2026
It expects Starship to begin delivering payloads by the end of the year, enabling it to send up to 60 of its V3 satellites to orbit at a time.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 8, 2026
“I am very cold, very tired. Scott tell to me, ‘You go down, send up Anatoli.’
From "Into Thin Air" by Jon Krakauer
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
