as in sloppy
appealing to the emotions in an obvious and tiresome way
a sentimental story about unrequited love
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of sentimental
The taste will definitely take you back to a sentimental moment.
—
Mary Shannon Wells, Southern Living, 4 Mar. 2026
Things couldn’t be more sentimental or nostalgic.
—Literary Hub, 27 Feb. 2026
Inclusion, for him, was not sentimental.
—John Hope Bryant, Time, 25 Feb. 2026
For all his love for Chicago, White’s return on Tuesday wasn’t a visibly sentimental affair.
—Julia Poe, Chicago Tribune, 24 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for sentimental
Mary Shannon Wells, Southern Living, 4 Mar. 2026
Things couldn’t be more sentimental or nostalgic.
—Literary Hub, 27 Feb. 2026
Inclusion, for him, was not sentimental.
—John Hope Bryant, Time, 25 Feb. 2026
For all his love for Chicago, White’s return on Tuesday wasn’t a visibly sentimental affair.
—Julia Poe, Chicago Tribune, 24 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for sentimental
Recent Examples of Synonyms for sentimental
Adjective
-
The Penguins were sloppy in the defensive zone and didn’t put the Flyers away on the power play.—
Josh Yohe,
New York Times,
8 Mar. 2026
-
A couple sloppy Westlake possessions have given the Lady Tigers the momentum.—
American-Statesman staff,
Austin American Statesman,
7 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
When slicked with oil over high heat, the morsels crisp into a textural marvel, jumping a long way from their original sticky form.—
Nina Moskowitz,
Bon Appetit Magazine,
10 Mar. 2026
-
Brewing economic conditions suggest, however, that when Warsh takes office, presumably in May, central bank policymakers could be facing both a wobbly jobs picture and sticky inflation made worse by spiraling energy prices.—
Jeff Cox,
CNBC,
10 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
The book’s final section, comprising a reunion at a funeral, could have been mawkish but instead is moving … A riveting tale.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
20 Feb. 2026
-
Knight’s directorial debut never tips over into mawkish but has some unashamedly tender moments.—
Stewart Clarke,
Deadline,
11 Feb. 2026
Adjective
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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
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Its almost schmaltzy final notes are a brilliant companion to Coppola’s unforgettable ending.—
David Ehrlich,
IndieWire,
20 Aug. 2025
Adjective
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Good intentions — and handsome animation — aside, Forevergreen is ultimately too maudlin and moralistic to rank it much higher than this.—
Joe Reid,
Vulture,
10 Mar. 2026
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As the whole business dragged on, the atmosphere started to seem less like a game show and more like the late-night Jerry Lewis telethons of the 1970s, in which a tired but pumped Lewis alternately griped at the audience, broke into maudlin emotion, or jumped up to welcome a new guest.—
Tom Nichols,
The Atlantic,
25 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
The duet is unabashedly sappy, its lyrics full of period-perfect, flowery Medieval revivalism tropes.—
Rebecca Alter,
Vulture,
31 Jan. 2026
-
That’s sappy but sweet stuff, arriving at a time when so much of the human project seems bent toward cruelty and annihilation.—
Richard Lawson,
HollywoodReporter,
27 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
Even if Project Hail Mary at times leans into the sentiment to an almost saccharine degree, the movie’s natural sweetness is disarming.—
David Rooney,
HollywoodReporter,
10 Mar. 2026
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Especially because the historicization does something to Martin’s writing, tossing in a saccharine element that neutralizes some of his humor.—
Emma Alpern,
Vulture,
10 Mar. 2026
Adjective
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In the movie’s fuzzy metaphysics, Shelley wills herself into the consciousness of a character named Ida (also played by Buckley), a young woman angling for survival in 1930s Chicago — a colorful, dangerous world of bawdy lotharios and lethal gangsters.—
Peter Tonguette,
The Washington Examiner,
13 Mar. 2026
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Block squirts out a capturing of Dreyfuss as a fuzzy-haired neurotic ping-ponging mood changes around the set.—
Christopher Smith,
Oc Register,
10 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Sentimental.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/sentimental. Accessed 14 Mar. 2026.
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