cornball

Etymology

Definitions

1. 1

   A ball of popped corn stuck together with soft candy from molasses or sugar.

   • How large and inviting were the cornballs that piled the platter, and how crisp and glossy the braids and twists of molasses candy that mother and cousin had made when the little ones were snug in bed.
2. 2

   An unsophisticated person.

3. 3

   Something or someone excessively corny.

   • That movie was a real cornball.
   • [Paul] Rudd, especially, finds the perfect balance between synthetic cornball charm and actual emotional engagement. Like the movie itself, he’s best when playing the rom-com clichés straight.
4. ›+ 2 more definitionsshow fewer

   1. 4

      A corny person

      A corny person; an uncool, stupid, or lame person.

      • Who's this cornball, man?
   2. 5

      Naive, corny.

      • I know this sounds cornball, but I'd like to somehow make a difference in people's lives.
      • The Brady Bunch Movie, released in February of 1995, was built on this ambivalence: It was both an affectionate appreciation of the 1970s family sitcom and a parody of everything that made it cornball and outdated.

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