spoof

1 of 2

verb

spoofed; spoofing; spoofs

transitive verb

1
2
: to make good-natured fun of

spoof

2 of 2

noun

1
2
: a light humorous parody
spoofery noun
spoofy adjective

Examples of spoof in a Sentence

Verb spoofed overly competitive parents in a mockumentary about tryouts for a national T-ball team the newspaper was spoofed by a supposedly plausible claim of a UFO encounter Noun many viewers thought that the spoof of a television newscast was the real thing
Recent Examples on the Web
Verb
In 2022 and 2023, EASA, warned about an increase in reports of GPS spoofing and jamming incidents taking place in areas surrounding Russia, including in Finland, around the Black Sea and in the Baltic Sea area, according to the Wall Street Journal. Michael Dorgan, Fox News, 30 Mar. 2024 Patel noted the phone call spoofed Apple’s official support line number at 1-800-275-2273. Michael Kan, PCMAG, 27 Mar. 2024 The Kansas City Chiefs just dropped a new post-season promotional trailer that spoofs Tyler Hynes and Janel Parrish’s Hallmark rom-coms — and one of its cameos has some fans speculating that it was also inspired by Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce’s romance. Dustin Nelson, EW.com, 10 Jan. 2024 By spoofing the identity of a carrier—the companies that employ truck drivers to pick up goods—fraudsters can trick brokers who arrange those deals into handing over large amounts of cargo. Andy Greenberg Andrew Couts, WIRED, 30 Mar. 2024 Here are some tips from Anand and the FBI to protect yourself: Phone numbers can easily be faked or spoofed. USA TODAY, 24 Mar. 2024 Some skeptics believe that one of the technologies that helps explain more recent UFO sightings is the field of radar spoofing. Lucas Ropek / Gizmodo, Quartz, 19 Mar. 2024 The practice is common, but can be used to conceal a cargo’s origin, especially when used with spoofing. Christiaan Triebert, New York Times, 16 Feb. 2024 As a result, Ukrainian drone operators are experimenting with ways to overcome jamming and spoofing. Paul Lushenko, The Conversation, 16 Feb. 2024
Noun
The mix of references, affection and wicked satire — and what Williams fan does not also enjoy Williams spoofs? — was like candy laced with arsenic. Elisabeth Vincentelli, Washington Post, 3 Apr. 2024 Dan Gregor and Doug Mand, two screenwriters who worked with Schaffer, 46, on 2022's Chip 'n Dale; Rescue Rangers, are also writing the script the latest untitled installment in the crime spoof franchise. Kimberlee Speakman, Peoplemag, 2 Apr. 2024 Even though some companies have had April Fools' pranks backfire, marketers continue to issue spoof products in attempts to get some laughs and attention. Mike Snider, USA TODAY, 1 Apr. 2024 In late 2022, Meta – the owner of Facebook and Instagram – warned Doppelganger had been mimicking major news outlets and creating spoof articles. Christian Edwards, CNN, 30 Mar. 2024 The first skit of the night put the spotlight on a bunch of shorties courting Chloe Fineman in a spoof of The Bachelor appropriately titled Crown Your Short King. Shania Russell, EW.com, 21 Jan. 2024 Saturday Night Live’s spoof of reality dating shows in 2021 was called What’s Your Type?; the joke, in large part, was that the bachelorette was inexplicably but consistently into men who were plainly terrible. Faith Hill, The Atlantic, 27 Mar. 2024 The clip then cut to a trailer for a new episode of EM, a spoof of ER starring Eminem. EW.com, 20 Mar. 2024 Great shows are all over From a crazy-goofy spoof of Alfred Hitchcock to dance troupe Robert Moses KIN’s take on censorship, there are a lot of great shows and concerts to catch this weekend. Randy McMullen, The Mercury News, 14 Mar. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'spoof.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Verb

Spoof, a hoaxing game invented by Arthur Roberts †1933 English comedian

First Known Use

Verb

1889, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun

1889, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of spoof was in 1889

Dictionary Entries Near spoof

Cite this Entry

“Spoof.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/spoof. Accessed 19 Apr. 2024.

Kids Definition

spoof

verb
ˈspüf
: to make good-natured fun of
spoof noun

More from Merriam-Webster on spoof

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