campy

English

Etymology

From camp (“an affected or exaggerated style”) +‎ -y.

Pronunciation

• (US) IPA^(key): /ˈkæmpi/

• Audio (Southern England):

  (file)

Adjective

campy (comparative campier, superlative campiest)

1. Characterized by camp or kitsch, especially when deliberate or intentional.

   Stu liked to watch campy B-movie horror flicks from the 1950s, not because they scared him, but because he found them funny.

   • 2000 September 21, Hal Foster, “Slumming with Rappers at the Roxy”, in London Review of Books‎^[1], volume 22, number 18, →ISSN:

     It no longer worked, culturally or financially, to be either snooty or campy about lowbrow culture; at the same time its mediation of highbrow culture no longer counted for much either.

   • 2023 February 19, Richard Sandomir, “Sal Piro, ‘Rocky Horror Picture Show’ Superfan, Dies at 72”, in The New York Times‎^[2], →ISSN:

     A campy science-fiction/horror musical whose characters include the cross-dressing mad scientist Dr. Frank-N-Furter, it had been developing a following for its Friday and Saturday midnight showings for several months.

   • 2023 June 21, Julia Jacobs, “A Britney Spears Jukebox Musical Hopes for #SeeBritney Energy”, in The New York Times‎^[3], →ISSN:

     A campy fairy-tale spoof that sidesteps the bio-musical formula to focus on a cast of disillusioned Disney princesses and storybook protagonists, “Once Upon a One More Time” is the latest in a long line of jukebox musicals that have plumbed the catalogs of acts including Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons, Michael Jackson, Tina Turner and the Temptations in pursuit of box office gold.

Synonyms

• (characterized by camp or kitsch): camp, corny, hammy, silly, tawdry, vulgar

Derived terms

• campily
• campiness
• uncampy

 

Translations

Translations

• Spanish: camp (es), teatral (es), amanerado (es) m, exagerado (es) m, teatrero m