bambochade
|bam-bo-chade|
/ˌbæmbəˈʃɑːd/
comic caricature / burlesque depiction
Etymology
'bambochade' originates from French, specifically the word 'bambochade', ultimately from Italian 'bambocciata', where 'bamboccio' meant 'big baby/puppet' or was a nickname meaning a clumsy or comical figure.
'bambochade' changed from the Italian term 'bambocciata' (used for comic genre scenes inspired by the nickname 'Bamboccio' of the painter Pieter van Laer) into French 'bambochade', and was later borrowed into English as 'bambochade'.
Initially it referred specifically to comic or low-life genre paintings (the 'bambocciata' scenes); over time it broadened to mean any burlesque, travesty, or comic caricature in art, literature, or performance.
Meanings by Part of Speech
Noun 1
a comic or burlesque imitation; a caricature or travesty intended to mock or lampoon.
The critic called the production little more than a bambochade, all mockery and no insight.
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Noun 2
a type of comic or grotesque painting or scene (historical/art-historical sense), especially imitating the Italian 'bambocciata' scenes of low-life genre subjects.
The museum's catalogue described the canvas as a bambochade showing bustling market scenes of 17th-century Rome.
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Last updated: 2026/01/09 03:40