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Meaning & use

spoofs

noun, verb·Everyday

Last updated

UK/spuːfs/
US/spuːfs/

“spoofs” is a form of “spoof”. See that entry for the full set of meanings.

Meanings

  1. nouncountable

    Humorous imitations of a film, show, person or style that exaggerate its features to make people laugh.

    Grammar: Plural of spoof: a spoof of a film, several spoofs.

    Patterns

    • a spoof of something
    • a spoof on something

    The comedy channel is full of spoofs of famous horror films.

    Her videos are spoofs of morning talk shows.

    Students performed spoofs of their teachers at the end-of-year show.

  2. verbtransitiveinformal

    Third person form of spoof, meaning to imitate something in a funny way, or to trick someone with a hoax.

    Grammar: Takes an object: she spoofs the news.

    Patterns

    • spoof something

    The show spoofs reality television every week.

    He spoofs politicians with a perfect accent.

    That page spoofs real newspaper headlines.

Word forms

singularspoof
-ing formspoofing
past tensespoofed

Common combinations

spoofs of films
The writers are known for spoofs of action films.
affectionate spoofs
Their sketches are affectionate spoofs of village life.
parody and spoofs
The festival features parody and spoofs from new comedians.
online spoofs
Online spoofs of the advert went viral.
spoofs the genre
The film spoofs the genre without mocking its fans.

Synonyms and how they differ

parodies
Parodies imitate a specific work and often comment on it, while spoofs may simply make general fun of a style.
send-ups
Send-ups is more British and informal, with a slightly teasing tone.
satires
Satires criticize society or people seriously through humor, which spoofs often do not.
takeoffs
Takeoffs is a looser word for imitation and is less common.

Word family

spoof noun
a funny imitation
spoofed adjective
made fun of through imitation or faked
spoofing noun
the act of imitating or faking, including faking an email sender

Commonly confused: spoofs or proof?

spoofs vs proof

Proof is evidence that something is true; a spoof is a joke imitation.

Practice

The film is one of several ___ that make fun of spy movies.

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