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Synonyms

kitsch

American  
[kich] / kɪtʃ /

noun

  1. something of tawdry design, appearance, or content created to appeal to popular or undiscriminating taste.

kitsch British  
/ kɪtʃ /

noun

    1. tawdry, vulgarized, or pretentious art, literature, etc, usually with popular or sentimental appeal

    2. ( as modifier )

      a kitsch plaster bust of Beethoven
"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
kitsch Cultural  

  1. Works of art and other objects (such as furniture) that are meant to look costly but actually are in poor taste.

Discover More

Kitsch in literature and music is associated with sentimentalism as well as bad taste.

Other Word Forms

Etymology

Origin of kitsch

First recorded in 1925–30; from German, derivative of kitschen “to throw together (a work of art)”

Explanation

Kitsch is art that's garish, nostalgic, and very low-brow. Some people who love the aesthetics of souvenir culture think kitsch is really cool, while others think it's in very poor taste. Kitsch is a German word that's been adopted into English, meaning "worthless, trashy art," or the quality of that art. A ceramic figurine of a puppy with sad eyes is pretty kitsch, as is a velvet Elvis painting. Of course some people think that kitsch is really beautiful and fill their homes with stuff that other people consider trashy souvenirs. If your painting teacher tells you your portraits are kitsch, that's probably not a compliment.

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Vocabulary lists containing kitsch

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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.

At the time of this sit-down, Seehorn is days away from beginning production in Texas on a film adaptation of the book that will also star Taylor Kitsch and Diego Luna.

From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 29, 2025

Kitsch says his character is the opposite — he’s a wild card and more lawless.

From Los Angeles Times • Aug. 27, 2025

“They are literally the umbrellas from Mar-a-Lago,” Pep Secretary Leavitt said of the yellow and white striped umbrellas on the patio as she gave reporters an impromptu tour of the Garden of Kitsch.

From Salon • Aug. 22, 2025

Netflix’s limited series starring Betty Gilpin and Taylor Kitsch plays out against the background of the so-called Utah War.

From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 9, 2025

Kitsch: defined in dictionaries as gaudy, trash, pretentious, shallow art expression addressing a low, unrefined taste.

From The Civilization of Illiteracy by Nadin, Mihai

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.