1
as in sentimental
appealing to the emotions in an obvious and tiresome way
corny violin music during the movie's love scenes
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in hokey
tiresomely obvious and unsophisticated
the audience groaned as the emcee told one corny joke after another
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of corny
Kate Bosworth is a corny idiot.
—
Ky Henderson, Rolling Stone, 15 Feb. 2026
The film’s eccentric flourishes may sound corny, but the writer-directors Eleanor Wilson and Alex Huston Fischer ground the premise in a deeply sincere sense of yearning.
—Shirley Li, The Atlantic, 14 Feb. 2026
The novel also suggests—mumblingly, without making eye contact, not wanting to be corny about it—that one’s own self becomes a little less hideous the more one attends to other selves.
—Literary Hub, 29 Jan. 2026
The novel also suggests—mumblingly, without making eye contact, not wanting to be corny about it—that one’s own self becomes a little less hideous the more one attends to other selves.
—Hermione Hoby, New Yorker, 26 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for corny
Ky Henderson, Rolling Stone, 15 Feb. 2026
The film’s eccentric flourishes may sound corny, but the writer-directors Eleanor Wilson and Alex Huston Fischer ground the premise in a deeply sincere sense of yearning.
—Shirley Li, The Atlantic, 14 Feb. 2026
The novel also suggests—mumblingly, without making eye contact, not wanting to be corny about it—that one’s own self becomes a little less hideous the more one attends to other selves.
—Literary Hub, 29 Jan. 2026
The novel also suggests—mumblingly, without making eye contact, not wanting to be corny about it—that one’s own self becomes a little less hideous the more one attends to other selves.
—Hermione Hoby, New Yorker, 26 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for corny
Recent Examples of Synonyms for corny
Adjective
-
Multitracked saxophones swarm over a pit of molten bass frequencies, slipping between sentimental consonance—you might momentarily be reminded of Vangelis’ Blade Runner score—and eerie discord.—
Philip Sherburne,
Pitchfork,
25 Mar. 2026
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The church said the statues' monetary value may be relatively small, but their historical and sentimental significance is much greater.—
Jennifer McRae,
CBS News,
24 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
What ultimately keeps the house from feeling hokey or trite is Glazer’s commitment to her all-encompassing taste.—
Mark Lamster
Architecture Critic,
Dallas Morning News,
10 Feb. 2026
-
With no internet, their only entertainment comes from booze, ping-pong, rudimentary video games, and VHS tapes of hokey old game shows.—
Richard Edwards,
Space.com,
21 Nov. 2025
Adjective
-
This was a better defensive effort for the Stars than their sloppy defeat Tuesday night at home against New Jersey.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
27 Mar. 2026
-
The Lakers relied on another part-time G League contributor to carry them through a sloppy fourth quarter.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
26 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
Davis and Head make strong impressions, masking the pedestrian, sometimes cornball dialogue.—
Television Critic,
Los Angeles Times,
26 Feb. 2026
-
With a wry chuckle, McCartney chalks up these cornball elements of his TV specials and other outings to the perils of being surrounded by yes people.—
Sheri Linden,
HollywoodReporter,
25 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
Equal parts creature feature and Florida noir, Mermaid is sticky, sunburned, and defiantly strange.—
Matthew Carey,
Deadline,
31 Mar. 2026
-
Maurer imagines blending the fungi with Martian or lunar dirt; their sticky mycelia would cement it into an extraterrestrial equivalent of particle board.—
Big Think,
Big Think,
31 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
With large tables inside and an outdoor patio featuring a rustic fire pit, the eatery could easily fit a few families, a birthday party or even a business meeting.—
Idaho Statesman,
Idaho Statesman,
28 Mar. 2026
-
Today’s popular tablescape often resembles an expensive country retreat, with an emphasis on rustic materials like stoneware and hand-turned wood.—
The New York Times News Service Syndicate,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
28 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
On Tuesday, Sasha De Sola, an old pro in the role, danced it with ravishing self-possession, hardly seeming to need the support of her consort Harrison James, who exuded the corn-fed charm of a linebacker while delivering cleanly polished grande pirouettes.—
Rachel Howard,
San Francisco Chronicle,
11 Feb. 2026
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Cattle—even corn-fed ones—tend to spend much of their life on pasture eating grass, which leads to a lot of methane burps, but growing that grass is not carbon intensive.—
Sarah Zhang,
The Atlantic,
8 Jan. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Corny.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/corny. Accessed 2 Apr. 2026.
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