Synonyms of schmaltzy

schmaltzy

adjective

as in sentimental

appealing to the emotions in an obvious and tiresome way

a schmaltzy television commercial featuring a photogenic, perfect family

Synonyms & Similar Words

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

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of schmaltzy

The schmaltzy rhetoric around nearly all of the works evidences a great desire for purpose, meaning, even dogma, but such things do not tend to emerge from entertainment or leisure practices so much as from constraint and necessity. — Kristian Vistrup Madsen, Artforum, 1 Nov. 2026

Albini doesn’t dress up those songs with any schmaltzy production or studio tricks. — David Harris, SPIN, 11 June 2026

In the way that Harrison looks to the Bible for models of relationships and drama, Cappa’s Haha, You Clowns looks to schmaltzy sitcoms and after school specials. — James Folta, Literary Hub, 18 Dec. 2025

Its almost schmaltzy final notes are a brilliant companion to Coppola’s unforgettable ending. — David Ehrlich, IndieWire, 20 Aug. 2025

This chicken was juicy, tenderly shreddable and doused in a schmaltzy sauce, an emulsion of chicken fat and stock, landing somewhere in between chicken gravy and milky oxtail broth. — Cesar Hernandez, San Francisco Chronicle, 1 July 2025