Sentimentality or vulgar, often pretentious bad taste, especially in the arts: "When money tries to buy beauty it tends to purchase a kind of courteous kitsch"(William H. Gass).
An example or examples of kitsch.
adj. Of, being, or characterized by kitsch: "The kitsch kitchen ... has aqua-and-white gingham curtains and rubber duck-yellow walls painted in a fried-egg motif"(Suzanne Cassidy).
[German, probably of dialectal origin.] kitsch'i·fy' v., kitsch'y adj.
n. any form of entertainment—movies, books, plays—with enormous popular appeal. : This kitsch sells like mad in the big city.
Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions by Richard A. Spears.Fourth Edition. Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
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kitschy
[ˈkɪtʃi]
mod. trivial in spite of enormous popular appeal. : A lot of people like kitschy art.
Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions by Richard A. Spears.Fourth Edition. Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
Cite This Source
Word Origin & History
kitsch
1926, from Ger., lit. "gaudy, trash," from dial. kitschen "to smear."