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schlock

schlock

7 9.4
Cheap things that break easily
  • noun
  • /ʃlɑk/
  • Slang
translation icon : chatarra
  • Now, she reads only American schlock pulp novels, romances—and she forgets, disremembers, she calls it.
  • schlock shop
  • schlock horror
  • piece of schlock

And so schlock cost and schlock is my reaction to Trog.

Examples

  • The store was filled with cheap toys and other schlock that barely lasted a week.

  • Most of the items at the flea market were just schlock, not worth the money.

  • Watching the review made me glad I never subjected myself to that schlock.

    Blog text (32)
  • We are lucky to have M. Bowmaster on that commission; otherwise, we will end up with schlock.

    Blog text (26)
  • Who produced this schlock?

  • During Oskar's tear-jerking ending monologue, I want to hear Mike say, "This is pure schlock!"

    Blog text (29)
  • Here's to cultivating future preservationists, who care about details and know quality versus schlock.

    Blog text (31)
  • I'd go for mainstream schlock: 'The Howling' and 'Piranha II: The Spawning.'

    Blog text (12)
  • His big break came in 1986, when he spotted schlock-action mogul Menahem Golan outside a restaurant in Hollywood.

    Blog text (21)
  • People often regret buying schlock that breaks easily after just one use.

Synonyms

piece of junk
vsschlock
  • Informal
36 3.2

A thing that is worth little and does not work well

applies to cheap or shoddy goods not only single objects
piece of crap
vsschlock
  • Offensive
34 8.9

A thing of very poor quality that is useless

is a neutral way to say low quality without crude language
dreck
vsschlock
  • Slang
7 9.9

Poor-quality items that are not worth buying

is about cheap or poorly made goods as well as worthless items
cheap knockoff
vsschlock
2 4.4

A low-cost fake of a brand-name item that looks like the real thing but is lower quality

refers to cheap or shoddy goods but not necessarily copies
cheapo
vsschlock
  • Informal
1 6.1

A thing that costs little and is low in quality

emphasizes poor quality rather than only low price
shoddy product
vsschlock
1 3.6

A thing made badly that breaks easily or does not work well

is a general term for cheap or low quality goods
cheapie
vsschlock
  • Informal
1 6.3

A thing that costs very little and is often made badly

is a neutral term for cheap or shoddy goods regardless of informality
shlock
vsschlock
  • Slang
9.7

Cheap goods that look badly made and will fall apart quickly

is the common standard form for the same idea
pure schlock
vsschlock
  • Informal
9.7

Very low quality art or entertainment that lacks new ideas

is inferior but may be only partly low quality
cack
vsschlock
  • Offensive
9.9

Something of very poor quality not worth buying

is a broader term for cheap or shoddy goods not only slang
total scag
vsschlock
  • Slang
9.9

An object like a phone or lamp that is broken and not worth keeping

is more general covering cheap or shoddy material as well

Antonyms

27 3.5

Made well so it lasts a long time

Compounds

pure schlock
  • Informal
9.7

Very low quality art or entertainment that lacks new ideas

How Shoddy

junk
373 1.1
schlock
  • Slang
7 9.4
quality
27 3.5

Surface Forms

schlock singular
schlocks plural

Etymology

Schlock comes from a Yiddish word and the German word Schlacke, meaning 'trash' or the waste left over from metal work. So calling something schlock compares it to cheap, worthless scraps, which is why it means cheap or shoddy goods.