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treacle

/ˈtrikəl/
/ˈtrikəl/
IPA guide

Use the noun treacle to describe a book or a song that is so sweet and sappy that it makes you feel a little sick.

Treacle is literally a type of thick, sticky syrup — that might help you remember its primary, figurative meaning as non-food that’s syrupy and sentimental. When someone lays on the flattery, that's treacle, as are overly sentimental music and calling your girlfriend "schmoopy-poo." Interestingly, the word treacle was originally used to mean "poison antidote," from the Greek root word thēriakē, "antidote for venom."

Definitions of treacle
  1. noun
    a pale cane syrup
    synonyms: golden syrup
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    type of:
    sirup, syrup
    a thick sweet sticky liquid
  2. noun
    anything that is excessively sweet and sentimental
    synonyms: glop, mush, slop
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    type of:
    sentimentalism
    the excessive expression of tender feelings, nostalgia, or sadness in any form
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