variants
or stagey
1
as in theatrical
given to or marked by attention-getting behavior suggestive of stage acting
a motivational speaker whose stagy presentations motivate some listeners to head for the nearest exit
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in dramatic
having the general quality or effect of a stage performance
the president's and the prime minister's public display of mutual admiration was a little too stagy to be convincing
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of stagy
And even though there are stretches of stagey-sounding expository dialogue, the story manages to wheel along at a clip.
—
Stephanie Zacharek, Time, 12 Sep. 2025
The Fence suffers from dialogue overload and a somewhat stagy mise-en-scène, although those elements occasionally yield strong sequences fraught with unsettledness, if not outright hostility, when the drama finally boils over.
—Jordan Mintzer, HollywoodReporter, 4 Sep. 2025
Some reservations: Song plays out the scenes between Lucy and Harry, and between Lucy and John, as two-way dialogues that are often stagy and too on-the-nose.
—Peter Rainer, Christian Science Monitor, 12 June 2025
His Cabinet gathered in the Rose Garden alongside supporters wearing hard hats and reflective vests—a stagy reference to all the manufacturing jobs that would presumably be flooding back to U.S. soil.
—Antonia Hitchens, New Yorker, 21 Apr. 2025
Ferrell just isn’t right for this part: The role is too stagy, too wordy for him, and his style of comedy is just too modern and deconstructionist to handle the Borscht Belt punning of Mel Brooks.
—Tim Grierson, Vulture, 4 Feb. 2025
Here was elegance without exaggeration, tension and beauty without stagy excess.
—James Shapiro, The New York Review of Books, 3 Jan. 2025
This framing device, which has the clunky air of a middlebrow play, provides a convenient if stagy way of breaking down his biography into manageable parts.
—Charles McNulty, Los Angeles Times, 9 Aug. 2024
Advertisement Gwen Grastorf’s embodiment of the scheming goody-goody Arsinoë is a tad stagy, but the character is still a fine foil for the quick-witted Célimène.
—Celia Wren, Washington Post, 4 May 2023
Stephanie Zacharek, Time, 12 Sep. 2025
The Fence suffers from dialogue overload and a somewhat stagy mise-en-scène, although those elements occasionally yield strong sequences fraught with unsettledness, if not outright hostility, when the drama finally boils over.
—Jordan Mintzer, HollywoodReporter, 4 Sep. 2025
Some reservations: Song plays out the scenes between Lucy and Harry, and between Lucy and John, as two-way dialogues that are often stagy and too on-the-nose.
—Peter Rainer, Christian Science Monitor, 12 June 2025
His Cabinet gathered in the Rose Garden alongside supporters wearing hard hats and reflective vests—a stagy reference to all the manufacturing jobs that would presumably be flooding back to U.S. soil.
—Antonia Hitchens, New Yorker, 21 Apr. 2025
Ferrell just isn’t right for this part: The role is too stagy, too wordy for him, and his style of comedy is just too modern and deconstructionist to handle the Borscht Belt punning of Mel Brooks.
—Tim Grierson, Vulture, 4 Feb. 2025
Here was elegance without exaggeration, tension and beauty without stagy excess.
—James Shapiro, The New York Review of Books, 3 Jan. 2025
This framing device, which has the clunky air of a middlebrow play, provides a convenient if stagy way of breaking down his biography into manageable parts.
—Charles McNulty, Los Angeles Times, 9 Aug. 2024
Advertisement Gwen Grastorf’s embodiment of the scheming goody-goody Arsinoë is a tad stagy, but the character is still a fine foil for the quick-witted Célimène.
—Celia Wren, Washington Post, 4 May 2023
Recent Examples of Synonyms for stagy
Adjective
-
Part of my demands were cast approval, final cut, and theatrical release.—
Ryan Lattanzio,
IndieWire,
6 Nov. 2025
-
After recent discussions with his major studio suppliers in Los Angeles, Jacob touted Paramount, newly-acquired by David Ellison’s Skydance, ramping up its movie output and growing interest in theatrical releases from streamers like Amazon and Apple.—
Etan Vlessing,
HollywoodReporter,
6 Nov. 2025
Adjective
-
The dramatic retelling chronicles the moments leading up to and immediately after the shotgun killings of Murdaugh’s wife, Maggie, and teenage son, Paul.—
Julia Bonavita,
FOXNews.com,
5 Nov. 2025
-
The country had made dramatic leaps in health-system capacity and life expectancy with the help of a mixture of projects.—
The New Yorker,
New Yorker,
5 Nov. 2025
Adjective
-
The album is so operatic and orchestral.—
Dan Rys,
Billboard,
5 Nov. 2025
-
Dance is the divinity these artists find to vivify them, taking inspiration from the Berlin techno club Berghain—this single’s namesake—and lifting it to operatic, sacred heights.—
Air Mail,
Air Mail,
1 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Stagy.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/stagy. Accessed 8 Nov. 2025.
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