cornball
cornball Lexical Profile
cornball Game Scores & Validity
• adjective
North American Clichéd, overly sentimental, or unsophisticated in a way that feels trite or foolishly earnest.
"The movie was filled with cornball jokes that made the entire audience groan."
• noun
North American A person who indulges in clichés, trite humor, or overly sentimental and unsophisticated behavior.
"My dad is such a lovable cornball whenever he tells his favorite dad jokes at dinner."
North American A ball-shaped snack food made from puffed, popped, or fried cornmeal, often coated with syrup or cheese.
"The street vendor sold bags of sweet, crunchy caramel cornballs at the county fair."
• Nearby Words
Word Origin & Etymology
Coined in mid-20th-century American slang by blending 'corn' (in the sense of 'corny' or trite, unsophisticated humor) with '-ball' (a slang suffix modeled on words like 'screwball' and 'oddball').