campy

adjective

ˈkam-pē 

campier; campiest

: in the style of camp : absurdly exaggerated, artificial, or affected in a usually humorous way

campy horror movies

campy humor

Witnessing their synchronized routine, he almost expects them to break into some campy chorus line from one of the seedier nightclubs.

—Margaret Atwood

He could modify his outbursts into what were sometimes hilariously campy performances.

—Robert Gray

campily

ˈkam-pə-lē 

adverb

The new film promises to be as campily outrageous as its predecessors.

—John Stark

… the Addams Family, the campily macabre clan created by the late cartoonist Charles Addams …

—Margot Dougherty

campiness

ˈkam-pē-nəs 

noun

… hoped to take Rocketeer to a much higher level of sophistication and avoid the campiness of some of the more recent comics-inspired films.

—Ron Magid

… a power-mad despot, played with exhilarating campiness by John Malkovich.

—Steven Rebello

Examples of campy in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

That realization elevates the film’s campy blood-and-guts from gore to gut-punch. —Gráinne O'Hara Belluomo, WWD, 1 Dec. 2024

Wicked is simultaneously a campy parody and a corruption of Baum’s popular story. —Armond White, National Review, 27 Nov. 2024

For once, Millie is getting positive attention, for his campy performance of femininity (see entry No. 12). —Bethy Squires, Vulture, 22 Nov. 2024

Plus, Thandiwe Newton is giving the campy performance of her life as the ambitious Dame Vaako, and her attitude (and reptilian-looking gowns) really help sell the film’s goth spin on sci-fi and fantasy. —Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 21 Aug. 2024

Word History

Etymology

camp entry 3 + -y entry 1

First Known Use

1932, in the meaning defined above