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schlock
or shlock
[ shlok ]
/ ʃlɒk /
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This shows grade level based on the word's complexity.
adjective
Also schlocky. cheap; trashy: a schlock store.
noun
something of cheap or inferior quality; junk.
QUIZ
THINGAMABOB OR THINGUMMY: CAN YOU DISTINGUISH BETWEEN THE US AND UK TERMS IN THIS QUIZ?
Do you know the difference between everyday US and UK terminology? Test yourself with this quiz on words that differ across the Atlantic.
Question 1 of 7
In the UK, COTTON CANDY is more commonly known as…
Origin of schlock
First recorded in 1910–15; apparently from Yiddish shlak “apoplectic stroke, evil, nuisance, wretch” (compare Middle High German slac(g) “blow”; see slay); development of the English sense is unclear
Words nearby schlock
Schlieffen, Schliemann, schlieren, schlieren method, schlimazel, schlock, schlockmeister, schlocky, schlong, Schloss, schlub
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
How to use schlock in a sentence
Cain wrote one good book, Postman, and a shelf full of schlock.
So this is not an Avatar vs. Hurt Locker battle of popular schlock versus unappreciated quality.
British Dictionary definitions for schlock
schlock
/ (ʃlɒk) mainly US slang /
noun
goods or produce of cheap or inferior quality; trash
adjective
cheap, inferior, or trashy
Word Origin for schlock
Yiddish: damaged merchandise, probably from German Schlag a blow; related to slay
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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