schmaltz

American  

[shmahlts, shmawlts] / ʃmɑlts, ʃmɔlts /

Also schmalz sometimes shmaltz

noun

1. Informal. exaggerated sentimentalism, as in music or soap operas.

2. liquid animal fat, especially of a chicken.

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schmaltz British  

/ ʃmɔːlts, ʃmælts /

noun

1. excessive sentimentality, esp in music

2. animal fat used in cooking

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Etymology

Origin of schmaltz

First recorded in 1930–35; from Yiddish shmalts or German Schmalz; cognate with smelt ¹

Example Sentences

Brazilian pop hits pepper the soundtrack, jockeying for space alongside Chicago’s schmaltz epic “If You Leave Me Now.”

From Los Angeles Times

The movie purports to dip into the deep well of Shakespearean magnificence but emerges only with a ladle full of greasy schmaltz.

From The Wall Street Journal

The cookbook offers helpful guides to the different varieties of herring—from New Catch to schmaltz—smoked salmon and specialty fish such as sturgeon and sable and caviar.

From The Wall Street Journal

Her performance is just one of many surprises that highlight the show’s ability to flaunt its cleverness without smothering it in celebrity schmaltz.

From Salon

Doerr, meanwhile, creates a tender kind of suspense, alive and surprising and hopeful without careening into schmaltz.

From Los Angeles Times