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From Middle Frenchsatire, from Old French, from Latinsatira, from earlier satura, from lanx satura(“full dish”), from feminine of satur. Altered in Latin by influence of Ancient Greek σάτυρος(sáturos, “satyr”), on the mistaken notion that the form is related to the Greek σατυρικόν δράμα(saturikón dráma, “satyr drama”).
CAESAR. No, by the gods! would that it had been! Vengeance at least is human. No, I say: those severed right hands, and the brave Vercingetorix basely strangled in a vault beneath the Capitol, were (with shuddering satire) a wise severity, a necessary protection to the commonwealth, a duty of statesmanship—follies and fictions ten times bloodier than honest vengeance!
Usage notes
Often confused with parody, which does not necessarily have an element of social change.