sentimentalism
noun
sen·ti·men·tal·ism
ˌsen-tə-ˈmen-tə-ˌli-zəm 
1
: the disposition to favor or indulge in sentimentality
2
: an excessively sentimental conception or statement
Synonyms
Examples of sentimentalism in a Sentence
the sentimentalism of 19th-century art
the novel's sentimentalism bored me
Recent Examples on the Web
King’s honeyed voiceover begins the film with a kind of sentimentalism about childhood and its innocence.
—
Lisa Kennedy, Variety, 4 July 2024
The next few songs strand us on a mountaintop of sentimentalism, while subtly rebuking race and genre lines.
—Doreen St. Félix, The New Yorker, 1 Apr. 2024
In its commitment to a particular kind of sentimentalism, No Hard Feelings doesn’t fully lean into the raunchiness some might expect from its trailer or early buzz.
—Lovia Gyarkye, The Hollywood Reporter, 21 June 2023
Wilde believed that, contrary to the claims of sentimentalism and of generations of prudish literary critics, the quality of a work of art does not depend on its ethical purity—that art depicting the degraded, the depraved, or the wicked can still be beautiful.
—Kathryn Schulz, The New Yorker, 19 June 2023
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Lisa Kennedy, Variety, 4 July 2024
The next few songs strand us on a mountaintop of sentimentalism, while subtly rebuking race and genre lines.
—Doreen St. Félix, The New Yorker, 1 Apr. 2024
In its commitment to a particular kind of sentimentalism, No Hard Feelings doesn’t fully lean into the raunchiness some might expect from its trailer or early buzz.
—Lovia Gyarkye, The Hollywood Reporter, 21 June 2023
Wilde believed that, contrary to the claims of sentimentalism and of generations of prudish literary critics, the quality of a work of art does not depend on its ethical purity—that art depicting the degraded, the depraved, or the wicked can still be beautiful.
—Kathryn Schulz, The New Yorker, 19 June 2023
See all Example Sentences for sentimentalism
Dictionary Entries Near sentimentalism
Cite this Entry
“Sentimentalism.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sentimentalism. Accessed 26 Nov. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
sentimentalism
noun
sen·ti·men·tal·ism
ˌsent-ə-ˈment-ᵊl-ˌiz-əm
1
: a tendency to be sentimental
2
: an overly sentimental idea or statement
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