cartoonish

British  

/ ˌkɑːˈtuːnɪʃ /

adjective

1. like a cartoon, esp in being one-dimensional, brightly coloured, or exaggerated

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Explanation

Something cartoonish is exaggerated and overly simplified, like your cartoonish drawing of a cat or a cartoonish movie villain. This adjective can mean "like a cartoon," as in the simple, unrealistic illustrations in a kid's book. It also describes things that are over-the-top and a bit silly: "Their cartoonish makeup looked fine onstage, but it's too much up close!" If the bad guy in a film grins evilly and twirls his mustache, most viewers will find him a little cartoonish. The word comes from cartoon, originally "a drawing on strong paper," from a root meaning "heavy paper."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

cartoonish

In the joke that inspires the special’s title, she measures an Instagram comment’s subzero value in a wide scope, lampooning the communal yet cartoonish nature of our endless scroll.

From Salon ● Oct. 16, 2026

More than one flopped backward in a cartoonish froth of sparks.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 3, 2026

Worse, Acme is represented by John Cena’s ferocious defense attorney Buddy Crane, the former wrestler making full use of his cartoonish features: lantern jaw, perma-frown, and a bull neck thick enough for boulder-sized bolo ties.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 26, 2026

"They're travelling at such pace that actually the riders' hair is blown back in quite an expressive cartoonish way, to show how fast they're moving".

From BBC ● Jul. 17, 2026

There was something childish about his movements, almost cartoonish.

From "The Kill Order (Maze Runner, Book Four; Origin)" by James Dashner

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