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tearjerker

[ teer-jur-ker ]
/ ˈtɪərˌdʒɜr kər /
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See synonyms for: tearjerker / tearjerking on Thesaurus.com
noun
a story, play, movie, or the like that is sentimental or sad enough to evoke pangs of emotion to the point of tears: This new version of a classic tearjerker is touted as the must-see film of the holiday season, but it lacks the genuine warmth of the original.
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Origin of tearjerker

First recorded in 1930–35; tear1 + jerk1 + -er1

OTHER WORDS FROM tearjerker

tear·jerk·ing, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Words related to tearjerker

heartbreaker, human interest, pathos, schmaltz, sentimentalism

How to use tearjerker in a sentence

  • A reappraisal of another epic tear-jerker, Gone with the Wind, is discussed in the TLS this week by Paula Marantz Cohen.

    Best of Brit Lit|Peter Stothard|July 9, 2009|DAILY BEAST

British Dictionary definitions for tearjerker

tear-jerker
/ (ˈtɪəˌdʒɜːkə) /
noun
informal an excessively sentimental film, play, book, etc
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
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