Question 1 · Quick check
satire
CEFRC2
/ˈsætaɪɹ/
noun
Türkçe translations
Translating…
In plain English
- 01
noun
Humor used to criticize people, ideas, or society.
- 02
noun
Extra detailA satirical work.
Examples
He was not aware that the praise was a satire in disguise.
The play is a satire on the political world.
At a glance
Sits at C2 on the CEFR scale
- Senses
- 4
- Parts of speech
- 1
- Citations
- 1
Deep Dive
noun
Extra meaningsSeverity of remark.
A literary device of writing or art which principally ridicules its subject often as an intended means of provoking or preventing change or highlighting a shortcoming in the work of another. Imitation, humor, irony, and exaggeration are often used to aid this.
More examples
In contexta stinging satire of American politics.
Satire deflates and debases. It is an art which topples greatness, undermines pretension and punishes pride by revealing the low in the pretendedly high, the filth in the pure, the folly in reason. This belittling trick deploys telescopic lenses which picture...
Quick test
Two questions on this entry. Nothing is scored.
Practise this properly in the app, where the word comes back before you forget it.
Nearby
Origin
noun
From Middle French satire, from Old French, from Latin satira, from earlier satura, from lanx satura (“full dish”), from feminine of satur. Altered in Latin by influence of Ancient Greek σάτυρος (sáturos, “satyr”), on the mistaken notion that the form is related to the Greek σατυρικὸν δράμα (saturikòn dráma, “satyr drama”).