TRAV'ESTY, adjective [infra.] Having an unusual dress; disguised by dress so as to be ridiculous. It is applied to a book or composition translated in a manner to make it burlesque. TRAV'ESTY, noun A parody; a burlesque translation of a work. travesty may be intended to ridicule absurdity, or to convert a grave performance into a humorous one. TRAV'ESTY, verb transitive To translate into such language as to render ridiculous or ludicrous. G. Battista Lalli travestied Virgil, or turned him into Italian burlesque verse.
Source: Webster's 1828 American Dictionary ↗ · public-domain · returned verbatim, no AI