send-up

or send·up

[ send-uhp ]

noun

1. an entertaining or humorous burlesque or parody; takeoff:

   The best skit in the revue was a send-up of TV game shows.

send up

verb

1. slang.
   to send to prison
2. informal.
   to make fun of, esp by doing an imitation or parody of

   he sent up the teacher marvellously

noun

1. informal.
   a parody or imitation

Word History and Origins

Origin of send-up¹

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

It works best as a comedy, a clever send-up of electoral politics.

From Los Angeles Times

She starred in the 1986 soap opera send-up “Fresno” on CBS and in a couple of short-lived TV series.

From Los Angeles Times

To capture that excitement, we asked Times staffers to look into their crystal balls and preview the culture likely to dominate the water-cooler conversation this season, from “The Substance,” a gross-out parable of Hollywood glamour, to “Interior Chinatown,” a clever send-up of the industry’s history of Asian stereotypes, to Shaboozey, the genre-defying artist poised to take the Fonda by storm next month.

From Los Angeles Times

Premiering Nov. 19 on Hulu, the 10-episode series was created by Charles Yu and adapted from his National Book Award-winning novel of the same name, a moving, inventive send-up of Asian stereotypes in pop culture.

From Los Angeles Times

It’s a thriller about petty men undone by aspiration: mostly silly, sure, but also at times clever in its send-up of electoral politics.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• banter
• caricature
• irony
• mockery
• parody
• sarcasm
• skit
• spoof
• wit