Word of the Day

: August 13, 2023

travesty

noun TRAV-uh-stee

What It Means

Travesty refers to something that is shocking, upsetting, or ridiculous because it is not what it is supposed to be, but is instead a distorted or badly inferior imitation of it. The word is often used in the phrase “a travesty of.” Travesty is not a synonym of tragedy, which refers instead to a disastrous event.

// That the timber company only had to pay a minimal fine after being found guilty of illegal logging was considered by many to be a travesty of justice.

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travesty in Context

“Ten years and a number of entries later, ‘Fast Five’ is the first sequel to the 2001 ‘The Fast and the Furious’ that’s worth watching, that isn’t an embarrassment or a travesty of the original picture.” — Mick LaSalle, SFChronicle.com, 20 May 2023

Did You Know?

When disaster strikes, keeping track of which word to use seems pretty unimportant. But you don’t want to describe disastrous events as travesties, because they’re not: they’re tragedies. Travesties are terrible too, but travesty refers specifically to something that is done in a way that makes a mockery of what it’s supposed to be: for example, a contest won by the judge’s spouse could be considered a travesty. And a trial in which the defendant wasn’t allowed to present evidence could be described as a “travesty of justice.” Travesty, which can also function as a verb meaning “to make a travesty of” or “to parody,” comes from the French verb travestir, meaning “to disguise.” Its roots, however, wind back through Italian to the Latin verb vestire, meaning “to clothe” or “to dress.” Other descendants of vestire include vestment, divest, and invest.