cardboard
1
6.5
- adjective
- /ˈkɑrdˌbɔrd/
- Offensive
:
plano
- The character in the movie felt very cardboard, lacking any real depth or personality.
And I think most of my life I was that cardboard cut out.
- And I think most of my life I was that cardboard cut out.
- Yeah, we we tend to love the cardboard testimonies of just like crack addict housewife.
- They can, they can question, you know, they're not cardboard.
Examples
-
Like others, the Boston Herald felt its "optical gymnastics... rob attention from the story" (Koch, "Sweet"), and numerous critics sneered at the amateurish acting and cardboard white villains.
Academic text (2017) -
Sometimes we get villains who are very cardboard cut out just, you know, gleefully wreaking havoc for for the heck of it.
-
Obviously, in real life, women and men are not cardboard cutouts like that, but these stereotypes affect real people.
Blog text (3) -
His arguments were so cardboard that it was hard to take him seriously.
-
Many people considered her performance in the play to be cardboard and unconvincing.
Synonyms
1
5.2
Having the look or feel of cheap plastic
1
8.8
Not real and simple, like a character in an old film
Not like real life and missing natural feeling
Antonyms
- Specialized
5
5.6
Supporting the idea that the world exists even if we do not think about it
Compounds
- Slang
A funny name for a small, cheap place to live that is old or in bad condition
How Realistic
218
3.8
22
3.9
- Offensive
1
6.5
- Informal
3
5.5
10
4.2
Surface Forms
Morphology
Etymology
Cardboard as an adjective comes from the material cardboard, which is thin, flat and simple. So calling a person or character 'cardboard' means they are flat and not real or deep.