Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *ǵerh₂- Proto-Indo-European *-nóm Proto-Indo-European *ǵr̥h₂-nós Proto-Indo-European *ǵr̥h₂nóm Proto-Germanic *kurną Proto-West Germanic *korn Old English corn Middle English corn Proto-Indo-European *-kos Proto-Germanic *-gaz Proto-West Germanic *-g Old English -iġ Middle English -y Middle English corny English corny From Middle English corny, equivalent to corn (“a type of cereal or grain”) + -y. Piecewise doublet of grainy. In the "hackneyed" sense, from "corn catalogue jokes", reputedly low-quality jokes that were formerly printed in mail-order seed catalogues.
The duct tape and wire was a pretty corny solution.
I mean if a boy's mother was sort of fat or corny-looking or something, and if somebody’s father was one of those guys that wear those suits with very big shoulders and corny black-and-white shoes, then old Haas would just shake hands with them and give them a phony smile and then he'd go talk, for maybe a half an hour, with somebody else's parents.1951 July 16, J[erome] D[avid] Salinger, The Catcher in the Rye, Boston, Mass.: Little, Brown and Company, →OCLC, page 19:
2
Hackneyed or excessively sentimental.
The movie was okay, but the love scene was really corny.
He sent a bouquet of twelve red roses and a card: "Roses are red, Violets are blue, Sugar is sweet, So are you." How corny is that?
Dreya shakes her head and rolls her eyes. "I'm going to bed. Y'all corny."2010, Nikki Carter, Not A Good Look, page 221:
“You and your silly bitch better give me fifty feet before both y'all corny asses get slam dunked in that pool.”2014, Niobia Bryant, Never Keeping Secrets, page 69:
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Y'all haters corny with that Illuminati mess2016, Beyoncé, “Formation”, in Lemonade:
"No, no, no," James said Wednesday (via ESPN). "That's wack. That's wack. Why? You got to earn your spot to be in the postseason. No consolation for finishing last. That's corny. That's corny. That's wack. To play for what? What are they playing for?"2018 March 21, Des Bieler, “'That's wack': LeBron James doesn't like idea of NBA postseason play-in tournament”, in Washington Post:
Country Cornbread Muffins (page 290) / Marlene Says: The cool crunchy salad and slightly sweet corny muffins are perfect partners to the creamy, spicy black bean soup.2012, Marlene Koch, Eat More of What You Love, Running Press, →ISBN:
There are cornbread recipes, and there are cornbread recipes. This one absolutely sings. Based on her daddy’s, and then her sister’s, beloved skillet-made bread, Maggie’s own recipe developed over time. It’s more about method, she says, but using stone-ground cornmeal and whole buttermilk are just as important. And a hot, seasoned cast-iron skillet is a must. What emerges is a rich “corny” bread, an almost melting soft interior encased in a ridiculously toothsome crust.2014, Nancy Vienneau, The Third Thursday Community Potluck Cookbook: Recipes and Stories to Celebrate the Bounty of the Moment, Nelson Books, Thomas Nelson, page 180:
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“CORNY” BREAD MUFFINS + HONEY BUTTER (GRAIN-, DAIRY-, SOY-, NIGHTSHADE-FREE) Well, making cornbread without corn is kinda tricky, but since corn is indeed a grain, “real” cornbread will not be found here.2015, Jennifer Robins, Down South Paleo: Delectable Southern Recipes Adapted for Gluten-Free, Paleo Eaters, Page Street Publishing Co., →ISBN, page 139:
Have beans, bacon, and cornbread for dinner.[…]Have peas, bacon, and corny bread for dinner.2019, George O. Wilson, Jr., Osborne Wilson’s Civil War Diaries, Christian Faith Publishing, Inc., →ISBN:
5
Obsolete Producing corn or grain; furnished with grains of corn.
The corny ear.1718, Mat[thew] Prior, “Solomon on the Vanity of the World. A Poem in Three Books.”, in Poems on Several Occasions, London: […] Jacob Tonson […], and John Barber […], →OCLC, (please specify the page):
Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *ḱer- Proto-Indo-European *-h₂ ? Proto-Indo-European *ḱerh₂-der. Proto-Italic *kornū Latin cornū̆ Latin cornua Vulgar Latin *corna Old French cornebor. Middle English corne English corn Proto-Indo-European *-kos Proto-Germanic *-gaz Proto-West Germanic *-g Old English -iġ Middle English -y English -y English corny From corn (“a type of callus”) + -y. Piecewise doublet of horny.
1
Having or pertaining to corns (a type of callus).
I had not long in open Street, / Been puniſhing my Corny Feet, […]1705, Edward Ward, “Part the Third. Canto IV.”, in Hudibras Redivivus: or A Burlesque Poem on the Times. […], 3rd edition, London: […] George Sawbridge, […], published 1715, →OCLC, page 4:
In this fine Order they proceeded, / The Grave, the Wiſe, the Bullet-headed, […] / The Craſy, Gouty, and the Corny, […]1706, Edward Ward, “Part VI. Vol. II. Canto VI.”, in Hudibras Redivivus: or A Burlesque Poem on the Times. […], 3rd edition, London: […] George Sawbridge, […], published 1715, →OCLC, page 22:
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E’en “Aunty Ann” her cleeky staff foregoes, / Forgets her asthma, and her corny toes; / Spreads out her petticoat, like peacock tail, / And up the dance begins to set her sail.1821 June, Juvenalis, Junior [pseudonym], “Sketches of Scottish Character. No. VII. ‘Harvest Home.’”, in Blackwood’s Edinburgh Magazine, volume X, number LIII, Edinburgh: William Blackwood; London: T[homas] Cadell and W[illiam] Davies, […], →ISSN, →OCLC, page 325:
We must go boldly to work; we must run the risk of twisting the very soul of the guilty, as well as of offending the corny sensibilities of their friends and relatives, if we would wish to arrest the progress of this malady, and secure for ourselves and our children the healthy and invigorating exercise of our public ordinances of religion.1821 August, a Presbyterian Clergyman [pseudonym], “On Psalm-singing in Our Churches, with Some Observations upon the Proposed ‘Additional Psalmody’”, in Blackwood’s Edinburgh Magazine, volume X, number LIII, Edinburgh: William Blackwood; London: T[homas] Cadell and W[illiam] Davies, […], →ISSN, →OCLC, page 567, column 2:
‘It’s his corns,’ Pyecroft explained. ‘You can’t shine corny feet—and he hasn’t had his breakfast.’1911, Rudyard Kipling, “The Horse Marines”, in A Diversity of Creatures, London: Macmillan and Co., […], published 1917, →OCLC, page 303:
Sabrina was no longer in the witch’s grasp; in fact, she was staring directly at the woman’s crusty, corny feet. Fudge, I made her a giant, Sabrina thought to herself […]2006, Michael Buckley, chapter 9, in The Problem Child (The Sisters Grimm; 3), New York, N.Y.: Amulet Books, →ISBN, page 235:
corny
adj
Etymology
Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *ḱer- Proto-Indo-European *-h₂ ? Proto-Indo-European *ḱerh₂-der. Proto-Italic *kornū Latin cornū̆ Latin cornua Vulgar Latin *corna Old French corne Middle French corne Proto-Indo-European *-kos Proto-Germanic *-gaz Proto-West Germanic *-g Old English -iġ Middle English -y English -y ▲ Latin cornu ▲ English -y English corny From Middle French corne + English -y, or from Latin cornu + English -y.
1
Obsolete Horny; strong, stiff or hard like horn; resembling horn.
Up stood the cornie Reed.1667, John Milton, “Book VII”, in Paradise Lost. […], London: […] [Samuel Simmons], and are to be sold by Peter Parker […]; [a]nd by Robert Boulter […]; [a]nd Matthias Walker, […], →OCLC; republished as Paradise Lost in Ten Books: […], London: Basil Montagu Pickering […], 1873, →OCLC: