Synonyms of mawkish

mawkish 1 of 2

adjective

ˈmȯ-kish 

as in sentimental

appealing to the emotions in an obvious and tiresome way

a mawkish plea for donations to the charity

Synonyms & Similar Words

• sentimental
• sloppy
• sticky
• schmaltzy
• maudlin
• saccharine
• cloying
• sappy
• wet
• soppy
• corny
• fuzzy
• sugary
• mushy
• drippy
• gooey
• chocolate-box
• sugarcoated
• slushy
• soupy
• lovey-dovey
• spoony
• nostalgic
• melodramatic
• feel-good
• fruity
• dreamy
• moony
• novelettish
• insipid
• vapid
• moonstruck
• soapy
• misty-eyed
• sudsy
• tasteless
• cutesy
• starry-eyed
• soap-operatic
• watery
• soft-boiled
• twee
• flat

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• unsentimental
• cynical
• unvarnished
• unadulterated
• hardheaded
• hard-edged
• antisentimental
• hard-boiled

mawkishness

2 of 2

noun

as in sentimentality

the state or quality of having an excess of tender feelings (as of love, nostalgia, or compassion)

the grating mawkishness of her poetry makes me want to stamp on wildflowers

Synonyms & Similar Words

• sentimentality
• sentimentalism
• bathos
• soppiness
• emotion
• sappiness
• sloppiness
• mushiness
• syrup
• gooeyness
• saccharinity
• sentiment
• mush
• lovey-doveyness
• schmaltz
• corniness
• hokeyness
• corn

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• cynicism
• hardheadedness
• hard-heartedness

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of mawkish

Adjective

Knight’s directorial debut never tips over into mawkish but has some unashamedly tender moments. — Stewart Clarke, Deadline, 11 Feb. 2026

After a mawkish beginning, the play somewhat redeems itself through earned emotions and an ambiguous ending that begs discussion. — Patrick Ryan, USA Today, 14 June 2025

Noun

These films explore those bonds without ever resorting to bromides or mawkishness. — Stephanie Zacharek, Time, 7 Nov. 2025

Then things just unravel into a half-hour of thoroughly phony mawkishness. — Daniel Fienberg, HollywoodReporter, 16 Sep. 2025

Podcast

Get Word of the Day delivered to your inbox!