travesty

Etymology

From French travesti (“disguised, burlesqued”), past participle of travestir (“to disguise”), borrowed from Italian travestire (“to dress up, disguise”), from tra- (“across”) + vestire (“to dress”), from Latin vestiō (“to clothe, dress”), from Proto-Italic *westis (“clothing”), from Proto-Indo-European *wéstis (“dressing”) from verbal root *wes- (“to dress, clothe”); cognate to English wear. Doublet of transvest.

noun

1. An absurd or grotesque misrepresentation.
   The second edition is not a recast, but absolutely a travesty of the first. 1845, Thomas De Quincey, William Godwin
   In 1844, objection was raised to the Furness Railway's Dalton & Barrow line, when it was revealed that the line would pass directly through Furness Abbey. A re-route was achieved, with the line skirting the abbey ruins instead - although many continued to see the intrusion as a travesty against antiquity and the scenic beauty of the site. January 12 2022, Dr. Joseph Brennan, “Castles: ruined and redeemed by rail”, in RAIL, number 948, page 56
2. A parody or stylistic imitation.
3. (derogatory) A grossly inferior imitation.
   A battlefield trial is a travesty of justice.
4. (colloquial, proscribed) An appalling version of something.
   Spurs survived the scare - and such was their domination after the break that it would have been a travesty had Arsenal escaped Wembley, hosting a Premier League record attendance of 83,222, with a draw. February 10, 2018, Phil McNulty, “Tottenham Hotspur 1 - 0 Arsenal”, in BBC

verb

1. (transitive) To make a travesty of; to parody.