Almibarado

[wrholt]

Originally Posted by BenCondor

Vapid is not a particularly rare word, in my opinion. Treacle, on the other hand, wow, I would have wagered $100 it wasn't even a word. Never once heard it, I'd be surprised if even 1 in 10,000 native English speakers had ever encountered it.

Originally Posted by Perikles

That is a really odd statement. I'm English, and I bet that every single English person I have met knows the words treacle and treacly. Both the COCA and BNC have plenty of examples, though treacly is not so common.

I'm not surprised by either of these statements: treacle is not commonly used in contemporary U.S. English; those of us from the U.S. who know the word typically learned it from reading British authors.

[poli]

Beware of that word mundane. It is a false cognate. Mondane does
not mean worldly in current English. Rather it means work-a-day, boring
or nothing special. In fact you can say, the character is supposed to be
mundana but in fact he is mundane.

If the Ameche character is percieved to be something bland or soso doctored up to appear appealing, a good word for him would be insipid (like what is served at certain fast-food establishments).

PS anyone who has read "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland" should be aware of treacle

[pjt33]

Originally Posted by poli

Oye English speakers, doesn't the word corny impy hickish to you?

No. Being corny and having a stalk of corn sticking out of your mouth are completely unrelated in my idiolect.

Originally Posted by Perikles

That is a really odd statement. I'm English, and I bet that every single English person I have met knows the words treacle and treacly. Both the COCA and BNC have plenty of examples, though treacly is not so common.

I know treacle as a literal sugar product, but I don't think I'm familiar with it as a metaphor.

[poli]

I'm not positive of the etimology, but I think corny comes from corn fed.
Corn fed is a term associated with livestock, but it is a fairly perjoritive term when used to refer farmers who cultivate acres and acres of corn. Especially in the past, but even in the present these people are not very exposed to a variety of people and styles. I think corny means appealing to country folk. They may fall for corny sentiment and humor. Even today, if you can bear it, listen to how corny political candidates get in places like Iowa.

It's corny to see outmoded things as the newest rage, or to get teary over a greeting card. That's corny, but it can also be endearing (at least it a certain extent).

[JPablo]

I guess that for the original question, one could even use two modifiers, as in "sugary maudlin" (?) "syrupy sentimental", "bathetically syrupy"... (not pathetically, but with "b", as in displaying "bathos" = maudlinness, tearfulness; mush, gush, schmaltz)

Just as suggestions... (natives to the rescue)

[aleCcowaN]

Well, sure we have by now adjective galore to qualify the pathos of the product, but with almibarado I was asking more about the ethos of what's behind, so to speak. I suppose almibarado is one of those words we natives think we know because we can analyse it. It's interesting to know that DRAE's definition is changing according to our times:

2001's definition:

almibarado, da. (Del part. de almibarar).
1. adj. empalagoso.

New definition for 23rd edition:

almibarado, da.
(Del part. de almibarar).
1. adj. Blando y meloso en el trato y en las palabras.

That's why I described it using "bland" among other words. Specifically the sweet part in almibarado -if any is left- is taken down to the lowest grade by the bland component which encompasses the qualities of sooth and smooth but also dull, insipid and unmoved.

So almibarado definitively has little to do with cloying and all the words similar to it, including educated or infrequent words that seem to be toned down just because they look distant when seen from our daily emotionality. Almibarado has also little to do with appealing to the sentiment of the masses, as corny may suggest.

Arrgh! Why has it to be so difficult to explain? Almibarar is like putting something earthy in the blender and adding a few drops of vanilla essence or some licorice and a tea spoon of sugar.