hokey

American  

[hoh-kee] / ˈhoʊ ki /

adjective

hokier, hokiest

1. overly sentimental; mawkish.

   Two glasses of wine and he gets unbearably hokey; it's hard to believe he's a highly paid executive!

   Synonyms:

   mushy, goopy, cloying, melodramatic, maudlin, corny

2. obviously contrived, especially to win popular appeal or support; phony.

   The hokey stories of his impoverished childhood always surface at election time.

   Synonyms:

   spurious, sham, counterfeit, artificial, false, fake

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hokey British  

/ ˈhəʊkɪ /

adjective

1. corny; sentimental

2. contrived; phoney

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Other Word Forms

• hokeyness noun
• hokiness noun

Etymology

Origin of hokey

First recorded in 1945–50; hok(um) + -y ¹

Example Sentences

By the end of the week the bond markets were more than nervous as a result of the hokey cokey over income tax.

From BBC

“This idea of truth, justice and the American way was deemed, even back then, hokey,” Schumer said.

From Los Angeles Times

Government cuts could also contribute to such a reading, but private sector sentiment has taken a hit too, especially by the hokey cokey over tariffs.

From BBC

What doesn’t is the hokey scene set in a Homegoods store where apparently small children with big designer dreams practice elaborate tablescaping.

From Los Angeles Times

While it might feel hokey to call Spangler a feel-good American success story, it’s about as close to one as you can get in corporate America these days.

From Salon