corny
1 Americanadjective
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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:
"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
It’s one of the set’s catchiest songs, marred only by a corny spoken-word bit—hopefully, she’ll leave these talky bridges behind on her next collection.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 16, 2026
He greeted the large crowd with his corny, familiar line, “Did you think you were coming to a Bad Bunny concert?”
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 1, 2026
That has tended to be less effective, though, as much of the music is perceived as corny to those who aren’t living in a Christian fundamentalist environment.
From Salon ● Apr. 1, 2026
The words looked like yarn, which was kind of cool and kind of corny at the same time.
From "When I Was the Greatest" by Jason Reynolds
“She’s a little bit cornier than us,” senior guard Charisma Osborne said, “but yeah, I think she really sets the standard.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 29, 2024
I think the “Star Wars” series “Andor” is one of the franchise’s most sophisticated and artful products to date; but I did enjoy returning to the lighter, cornier, more old-fashioned adventures of “The Mandalorian.”
From New York Times ● Mar. 1, 2023
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
In fact, the cornier the quips, the more they seemed to like it.
From Washington Times ● Oct. 6, 2015
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
Paying for a blue check is the corniest thing you can do.
From Salon ● Sep. 21, 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
My mom and dad lived the corniest of love stories, and as 1 got older, it embarrassed me to no end.
From "Shelter (Book One): A Mickey Bolitar Novel" by Harlan Coben
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
