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mawkish

[ maw-kish ]
/ ˈmɔ kɪʃ /
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adjective

characterized by sickly sentimentality; weakly emotional; maudlin.
having a mildly sickening flavor; slightly nauseating.

RELATED WORDS

sentimentalism, sentiment, mushiness, reminiscence, nostalgia, bathos, triteness, melodrama

Nearby words

  1. mavourneen,
  2. mavun,
  3. maw,
  4. mawger,
  5. mawkin,
  6. mawkishly,
  7. mawlamyine,
  8. mawlid,
  9. mawson,
  10. mawson, sir douglas

Origin of mawkish

1660–70; obsolete mawk maggot (late Middle English < Old Norse mathkr maggot) + -ish1. See maggot
Related formsmawk·ish·ly, adverbmawk·ish·ness, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for mawkishness

British Dictionary definitions for mawkishness

mawkish

/ (ˈmɔːkɪʃ) /

adjective

falsely sentimental, esp in a weak or maudlin way
nauseating or insipid in flavour, smell, etc
Derived Formsmawkishly, adverbmawkishness, noun

Word Origin for mawkish

C17: from obsolete mawk maggot + -ish
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

Word Origin and History for mawkishness

mawkish

adj.

1660s, "sickly, nauseated," from Middle English mawke "maggot" (see maggot). Sense of "sickly sentimental" is first recorded 1702. Related: Mawkishly; mawkishness.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper