lampoon

3 antonyms for lampoon — opposites grouped by meaning.

Verb — To attack a person or institution in public by making them ridiculous — in a cartoon, article, song or sketch that exaggerates their faults for comic effect.

Synonyms by Meaning

1. verb

To attack a person or institution in public by making them ridiculous — in a cartoon, article, song or sketch that exaggerates their faults for comic effect.

“The magazine has lampooned every prime minister since 1961.”

satirise mock ridicule send up pillory caricature satirize

Opposites

praise flatter eulogise

2. noun

A piece of writing or drawing that ridicules somebody in this way.

“The pamphlet was a savage lampoon of the bishop and his household.”

satire spoof send-up skit squib travesty burlesque mockery sendup pasquinade takeoff parody

Antonyms

praise flatter eulogise

How to use lampoon

The word patterns that sound natural to a native speaker.

mercilessly lampooned lampoon the government a savage lampoon lampooned in the press

Slightly literary or journalistic. Lampooning implies a public target with power or status — you lampoon a politician, not a neighbour.

Etymology

From French lampon, a name for a scurrilous satirical song, which entered English in the seventeenth century. The further origin of the French word is disputed.

Full origin of lampoon →

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between lampoon and satire?

Satire is the broad mode of using humour to expose folly, and it can attack ideas, systems or whole societies. A lampoon is narrower and more personal: it aims at a named individual or institution and tries to make that specific target look absurd.

What is the difference between lampoon and parody?

A parody imitates the form of a work or style — the rhythm of a song, the layout of a newspaper — for comic effect. A lampoon attacks the character or conduct of a person, and need not imitate anything at all.

Is lampooning someone illegal?

In most countries comic exaggeration of a public figure is protected as opinion or satire, precisely because no reasonable reader takes it as a statement of fact. It becomes actionable only if it presents invented, damaging claims as true.

People also searched

praise mock parody satire takeoff ridicule flatter mockery caricature skit burlesque send-up

Nearby words

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