corny
1 Americanadjective
-
cornier,
comparative
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corniest
superlative
adjective
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trite or banal
-
sentimental or mawkish
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abounding in corn
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Adjectives
Etymology
Origin of corny1
First recorded in 1350–1400; 1930–35 corny 1 for def. 2; Middle English; corn 1 + -y 1
Origin of corny2
Explanation
If your Uncle Marvin has a habit of telling corny jokes, they probably make you groan every single time. Corny describes something that's either worn out and tiresome or overly sentimental — and sometimes both. It can be hard to talk about something emotional without becoming corny. Try describing love at first sight without becoming trite or stickily sentimental and you'll know first-hand how easily you can find yourself sounding corny. For years corny simply meant "full of corn," or "tasting of malt." Sometime in the 1930s it became popular slang meaning "appealing to country folk," who were also described at the time as corn-fed, because of their supposed connection to farms.
Vocabulary lists containing corny
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
The story is a hectic combination of silly imagery and corny dialogue that, despite being written and directed by two men, Joel Crawford and Januel P. Mercado, loudly insists on its own girl power.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 24, 2026
But more often than not, the combination comes off forced; corny at best, insipid at worst.
From Salon ● Aug. 20, 2026
"I'm a physics teacher and I've got a terrible sense of humour," he confesses, so he particularly likes it if the students pick up on his fondness for corny puns.
From BBC ● Jul. 13, 2026
"I think for me those are the sounds of independence... it's also the sound of freedom, without trying to sound all corny."
From Barron's ● Jul. 2, 2026
No matter how much Dad is trying to keep things normal with his New York City scavenger hunt, no matter how much we all try to laugh at his corny jokes, these tears are here.
From "Watch Us Rise" by Renée Watson and Ellen Hagan
The soup tasted cornier than what you gnaw off the cob, because they roast the cobs to make the stock.
From Seattle Times ● Sep. 14, 2017
Yet most of the album’s songs have not aged well, especially the ersatz psychedelia of “Tuesday Afternoon,” which felt far cornier than other willfully trippy visions from its era.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 18, 2017
In fact, the cornier the quips, the more they seemed to like it.
From Washington Times ● Oct. 6, 2015
An Interview With Janusz Kaminski The story, in its early chapters, also takes you back to an older — you may well say cornier — style of entertainment.
From New York Times ● Dec. 22, 2011
Her mom and dad, together and apart, weirdly hovering over her hospital bed like aliens from movies even cornier than teenage family dramas.
From "Look Both Ways" by Jason Reynolds
It was the corniest thing you could ever imagine.
From Salon ● Feb. 5, 2023
But the overall mood is warm and cheery, and Lohan brings a spontaneous sincerity to even the corniest scenes.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 25, 2022
Yet it didn’t, because neither of these teams will relent, will give, will meet the moment with anything but the corniest, most wonderful spit-in-your-eye.
From Washington Post ● Oct. 30, 2017
Even the corniest summer blockbusters now regularly clock in at two-and-a-half hours.
From The Guardian ● Aug. 9, 2017
It’s the corniest and sweetest thing I’ve ever seen.
From "Pride" by Ibi Zoboi
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