cornball

English

Etymology

From corn +‎ ball.

Pronunciation

• Audio (US):

  (file)

Noun

cornball (plural cornballs)

1. A ball of popped corn stuck together with soft candy from molasses or sugar.
   • 1871, The Myrtle, volume 21, page 301:

     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. (US, informal) An unsophisticated person.
3. (US, informal) Something or someone excessively corny.

   That movie was a real cornball.

   • 2014 June 26, A. A. Dowd, “Paul Rudd and Amy Poehler Spoof Rom-com Clichés in They Came Together”, in The A.V. Club‎, archived from the original on 7 December 2017:

     [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. (US, African-American Vernacular, informal) A corny person; an uncool, stupid, or lame person.

   Who's this cornball, man?

Derived terms

• cornballish

Adjective

cornball (comparative more cornball, superlative most cornball)

1. (informal) Naive, corny.
   • 1994, Helen Childress, Reality Bites, spoken by Lelaina (Winona Ryder):

     I know this sounds cornball, but I'd like to somehow make a difference in people's lives.

See also

• cornfed

Further reading

• “cornball n.”, in Green’s Dictionary of Slang, Jonathon Green, 2016–present
• “cornball adj.”, in Green’s Dictionary of Slang, Jonathon Green, 2016–present