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spoof

[spoof]
See more synonyms for spoof on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. a mocking imitation of someone or something, usually light and good-humored; lampoon or parody: The show was a spoof of college life.
  2. a hoax; prank.
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verb (used with object)
  1. to mock (something or someone) lightly and good-humoredly; kid.
  2. to fool by a hoax; play a trick on, especially one intended to deceive.
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verb (used without object)
  1. to scoff at something lightly and good-humoredly; kid: The campus paper was always spoofing about the regulations.
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Origin of spoof

First recorded in 1885–90; after a game invented and named by Arthur Roberts (1852–1933), British comedian
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for spoofing

Contemporary Examples

Historical Examples

  • It always made him angry to find that they were "spoofing" him.

    The Highgrader

    William MacLeod Raine

  • If you are spoofing me I run the certainty of court martial.

  • But then, perhaps this grim joker, Yancey, was spoofing a bit.

    Aces Up

    Covington Clarke

  • "Afraid he's spoofing us," Kilmeny said with a laugh as he moved out in his waders against the current.

    The Highgrader

    William MacLeod Raine

  • “Old Noah may have been spoofing us,” Penny began, but just then Sara gave a little cry.

    Saboteurs on the River

    Mildred A. Wirt

British Dictionary definitions for spoofing

spoofing

noun
  1. the act or an instance of impersonating another person on the internet or via email
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spoof

noun
  1. a mildly satirical mockery or parody; lampoona spoof on party politics
  2. a good-humoured deception or trick; prank
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verb
  1. to indulge in a spoof of (a person or thing)
  2. to communicate electronically under a false identity
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Derived Formsspoofer, noun

Word Origin

C19: coined by A. Roberts (1852–1933), English comedian, to designate a game of his own invention
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for spoofing

spoof

n.

"hoax, deception," 1884, spouf, name of a game invented by British comedian Arthur Roberts (1852-1933); sense of "a parody, satirical skit or play" is first recorded 1958, from verb in this sense, attested from 1914.

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper