mawkish

adjective

mawk·ish ˈmȯ-kish How to pronounce mawkish (audio)

: lacking flavor or having an unpleasant taste

: exaggeratedly or childishly emotional

a mawkish love story

mawkish poetry

mawkishly adverb

mawkishness noun

Did you know?

The Squirming Origins of Mawkish

Mawkish really opens up a can of worms—or maggots, as it were: the word wriggled out from Middle English mawke, meaning “maggot.” Its earliest sense, used in the late 17th century but now obsolete, was synonymous with squeamish (understandable!) but not long after that mawkish was used to describe an unpleasant, nauseating, often sickeningly sweet flavor. It’s no surprise that a figurative sense of mawkish, used to describe things that are full of “sickly sweet” sentimentality, arose almost concurrently, one of several food texture- and taste-related words favored by critics to show disdain for art they deem overly emotive, including gooey, saccharine, mushy, and schmaltzy.

Example Sentences

a mawkish plea for donations to the charity

Recent Examples on the Web Goodness is difficult to depict without becoming mawkish, but Mr. Gurnah does it superbly.

Sam Sacks, WSJ, 26 Aug. 2022 And the inevitable reaffirmation of the family’s bonds, strengthened by the spirit of the girls’ mother, is touching without being too mawkish.

David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter, 18 Aug. 2022 Sin City trash whiplashes with mawkish cute-kid sensitivity.

Darren Franich, EW.com, 3 Jan. 2022 But the show made the relationship between Deborah and Ava spiky and unpredictable, touching without ever being mawkish, and revealing about the ways both women had to adapt to a show business world that judges females harshly.

oregonlive, 23 Dec. 2021 This may sound mawkish—but how much of our inner life is first learned through music?

The New Yorker, 6 Dec. 2021 Even when the season slows down a bit, Sudeikis’ vulnerability is touching, without ever being mawkish.

oregonlive, 20 July 2021 In most hands, this business of the mother-figure who sacrifices all for a child would be mawkish.

Rumaan Alam, The New Republic, 12 Apr. 2021 And so much of what concerned me as important in the earlier pages of my diary now seems mawkish, trivial or beneath notice.

Paul Theroux, New York Times, 30 Mar. 2020 See More

单词	mawkishness
释义	mawkish adjective mawk·ish ˈmȯ-kish 1 : lacking flavor or having an unpleasant taste 2 : exaggeratedly or childishly emotional a mawkish love story mawkish poetry mawkishly adverb mawkishness noun Did you know? The Squirming Origins of Mawkish Mawkish really opens up a can of worms—or maggots, as it were: the word wriggled out from Middle English mawke, meaning “maggot.” Its earliest sense, used in the late 17th century but now obsolete, was synonymous with squeamish (understandable!) but not long after that mawkish was used to describe an unpleasant, nauseating, often sickeningly sweet flavor. It’s no surprise that a figurative sense of mawkish, used to describe things that are full of “sickly sweet” sentimentality, arose almost concurrently, one of several food texture- and taste-related words favored by critics to show disdain for art they deem overly emotive, including gooey, saccharine, mushy, and schmaltzy. Synonyms chocolate-box cloying corny drippy fruity gooey lovey-dovey maudlin mushy novelettish saccharine sappy schmaltzy sentimental sloppy slushy soppy soupy spoony spooney sticky sugarcoated sugary wet See all Synonyms & Antonyms Example Sentences a mawkish plea for donations to the charity Recent Examples on the Web Goodness is difficult to depict without becoming mawkish, but Mr. Gurnah does it superbly. Sam Sacks, WSJ, 26 Aug. 2022 And the inevitable reaffirmation of the family’s bonds, strengthened by the spirit of the girls’ mother, is touching without being too mawkish. David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter, 18 Aug. 2022 Sin City trash whiplashes with mawkish cute-kid sensitivity. Darren Franich, EW.com, 3 Jan. 2022 But the show made the relationship between Deborah and Ava spiky and unpredictable, touching without ever being mawkish, and revealing about the ways both women had to adapt to a show business world that judges females harshly. oregonlive, 23 Dec. 2021 This may sound mawkish—but how much of our inner life is first learned through music? The New Yorker, 6 Dec. 2021 Even when the season slows down a bit, Sudeikis’ vulnerability is touching, without ever being mawkish. oregonlive, 20 July 2021 In most hands, this business of the mother-figure who sacrifices all for a child would be mawkish. Rumaan Alam, The New Republic, 12 Apr. 2021 And so much of what concerned me as important in the earlier pages of my diary now seems mawkish, trivial or beneath notice. Paul Theroux, New York Times, 30 Mar. 2020 See More Word History Etymology Middle English mawke maggot, probably from Old Norse mathkr — more at maggot First Known Use circa 1697, in the meaning defined at sense 1 mawkishness noun as in sentimentality the state or quality of having an excess of tender feelings (as of love, nostalgia, or compassion) the grating mawkishness of her poetry makes me want to stamp on wildflowers Synonyms & Similar Words Relevance sentimentality sentimentalism bathos soppiness sappiness emotion sloppiness mushiness syrup gooeyness saccharinity sentiment mush lovey-doveyness sirup schmaltz hokiness corniness hokeyness corn schmalz Antonyms & Near Antonyms cynicism hardheadedness hard-heartedness
随便看	spiflicating spiflication spiflications spig Spigeliaceae spigelian spiggoty spight spignel spignels spignet spignut spigot spigot joint spigot-and-faucet joint spigots spigotty spik spike spike buck spike bull spike camp spike disease spike glycoprotein spike glycoproteins

mawkish

adjective

Did you know?

Synonyms

Example Sentences

Word History

noun