Wiktionary

corny

See also: čorny

English

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Pronunciation

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Etymology 1

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From Middle English corny, equivalent to corn +‎ -y. In the "hackneyed" sense, from "corn catalogue jokes", reputedly low-quality jokes that were formerly printed in mail-order seed catalogues.

Adjective

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corny (comparative cornier, superlative corniest)

  1. Boring and unoriginal.
    The duct tape and wire was a pretty corny solution.
    • 1951, J. D. Salinger, The Catcher in the Rye, Boston, Mass.: Little, Brown and Company, →OCLC, page 19:
      I mean if a boy's mother was sort of fat or corny-looking or something, and if somebody’s father was one of those guys that wear those suits with very big shoulders and corny black-and-white shoes, then old Haas would just shake hands with them and give them a phony smile and then he'd go talk, for maybe a half an hour, with somebody else's parents.
  2. Hackneyed or excessively sentimental.
    Synonyms: kitsch, kitschy, cheesy, tacky, campy, schlocky, schmaltzy
    The movie was okay, but the love scene was really corny.
    He sent a bouquet of twelve red roses and a card: "Roses are red, Violets are blue, Sugar is sweet, And so are you." How corny is that!
  3. (African-American Vernacular, slang) Uncool, stupid, lame.
    • 2010, Nikki Carter, Not A Good Look‎[1], page 221:
      Dreya shakes her head and rolls her eyes. "I'm going to bed. Y'all corny."
    • 2014, Niobia Bryant, Never Keeping Secrets‎[2], page 69:
      “You and your silly bitch better give me fifty feet before both y'all corny asses get slam dunked in that pool.”
    • 2016, Beyoncé, “Formation”, in Lemonade:
      Y'all haters corny with that Illuminati mess
    • 2018 March 21, Des Bieler, “'That's wack': LeBron James doesn't like idea of NBA postseason play-in tournament”, in Washington Post‎[3]:
      "No, no, no," James said Wednesday (via ESPN). "That's wack. That's wack. Why? You got to earn your spot to be in the postseason. No consolation for finishing last. That's corny. That's corny. That's wack. To play for what? What are they playing for?"
    • For more quotations using this term, see Citations:corny.
  4. (rare) Containing corn.
    • 2012, Marlene Koch, Eat More of What You Love, Running Press, →ISBN:
      Country Cornbread Muffins (page 290) / Marlene Says: The cool crunchy salad and slightly sweet corny muffins are perfect partners to the creamy, spicy black bean soup.
    • 2014, Nancy Vienneau, The Third Thursday Community Potluck Cookbook: Recipes and Stories to Celebrate the Bounty of the Moment, Nelson Books, Thomas Nelson, page 180:
      There are cornbread recipes, and there are cornbread recipes. This one absolutely sings. Based on her daddy’s, and then her sister’s, beloved skillet-made bread, Maggie’s own recipe developed over time. It’s more about method, she says, but using stone-ground cornmeal and whole buttermilk are just as important. And a hot, seasoned cast-iron skillet is a must. What emerges is a rich “corny” bread, an almost melting soft interior encased in a ridiculously toothsome crust.
    • 2015, Jennifer Robins, Down South Paleo: Delectable Southern Recipes Adapted for Gluten-Free, Paleo Eaters, Page Street Publishing Co., →ISBN, page 139:
      “CORNY” BREAD MUFFINS + HONEY BUTTER (GRAIN-, DAIRY-, SOY-, NIGHTSHADE-FREE) Well, making cornbread without corn is kinda tricky, but since corn is indeed a grain, “real” cornbread will not be found here.
    • 2016, Stephanie Clarke, Willow Jarosh, Healthy, Happy Pregnancy Cookbook, Atria Paperback, →ISBN, page 83:
      Fiesta Corny Muffins / Cornbread goes with everything: salad, soup, and chili.
    • 2019, George O. Wilson, Jr., Osborne Wilson’s Civil War Diaries, Christian Faith Publishing, Inc., →ISBN:
      Have beans, bacon, and cornbread for dinner. […] Have peas, bacon, and corny bread for dinner.
  5. (obsolete) Producing corn or grain; furnished with grains of corn.
    • 1718, Mat[thew] Prior, “Solomon on the Vanity of the World. A Poem in Three Books.”, in Poems on Several Occasions, London: […] Jacob Tonson […], and John Barber […], →OCLC, (please specify the page):
      The corny ear.
  6. (obsolete, UK, slang) Tipsy; drunk.
    Synonyms: drunkish, squiffy; see also Thesaurus:drunk
    • 1850, Joseph Philip Robson, France's Songs of the Bards of the Tyne:
      Yen day when aw was corney.
  7. (euphemistic) Horny.
Derived terms
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Translations
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Etymology 2

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Latin cornu (“horn”).

Adjective

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corny (comparative more corny, superlative most corny)

  1. (obsolete) Strong, stiff, or hard, like a horn; resembling horn.
    • 1667, John Milton, “Book VII”, in Paradise Lost. […], London: […] [Samuel Simmons], and are to be sold by Peter Parker […]; [a]nd by Robert Boulter […]; [a]nd Matthias Walker, […], →OCLC; republished as Paradise Lost in Ten Books: […], London: Basil Montagu Pickering […], 1873, →OCLC:
      Up stood the cornie Reed.

Further reading

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Anagrams

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Middle English

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Etymology

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From corn +‎ -y.

Pronunciation

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  • IPA(key): /ˈkɔrniː/, /ˈkoːrniː/

Adjective

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corny

  1. (rare) fleshy, swollen
  2. (rare) containing corn; tasting of malt, tasting well of malt, malty
  3. (rare) resembling a grain

Descendants

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  • English: corny
  • Scots: cornie (obsolete, rare)
  • Yola: cornee, kurnee

References

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