hokey

adjective

hok·​ey ˈhō-kē 

hokier; hokiest

1

: corny entry 1 sense 1

the usual hokey melodrama

2

: obviously contrived : phony

The plots are tricky but not hokey.

—Cleveland Amory

hokeyness noun

or hokiness

ˈhō-kē-nəs 

hokily

ˈhō-kə-lē 

adverb

Synonyms of hokey

• cornball
• rustic
• corny
• corn-fed

Examples of hokey in a Sentence

She gave us some hokey excuse for being late.

their father's sense of humor was hokey beyond belief and most people's endurance

Recent Examples on the Web

Once tourist fodder, the musical has remained a byword for hokey commercialism. —Theater Critic, Los Angeles Times, 1 May 2026

Somehow the 200-acre eco-theme park avoids being hokey and trite—the biologists and naturalists here take their work seriously. —Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 29 Apr. 2026

What ultimately keeps the house from feeling hokey or trite is Glazer’s commitment to her all-encompassing taste. —Mark Lamster architecture Critic, Dallas Morning News, 10 Feb. 2026

With no internet, their only entertainment comes from booze, ping-pong, rudimentary video games, and VHS tapes of hokey old game shows. —Richard Edwards, Space.com, 21 Nov. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1927, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for hokey

• cloche
• gnocchi
• loci
• pokey
• smokey
• smoky
• karaoke