meretriciousness
Showy but hollow
Meretriciousness is the quality of being superficially attractive but lacking substance or sincerity.
The word carries overtones of tawdry showiness and cheap appeal—something designed to attract attention through flashy but hollow means: the meretriciousness of the advertising campaign, Critics dismissed the novel's meretriciousness.
The related adjective is meretricious.
Showy yet cheap quality
- flashinessOstentatious showiness
- gaudinessTasteless, excessive ornamentation
- showinessOstentatious display quality
- garishnessExcessive, tasteless brightness
tackiness · kitsch · vulgarity · loudness · glitziness · brassiness · cheapness · tinsel
Lack of depth
- hollownessState of being empty inside
- emptinessAbsence of substance
- veneerDecorative outer layer
- facadeDeceptive outward appearance
surface · gloss · pretense · artifice · insubstantiality · flimsiness · speciousness · vacuousness
Power to entice
- enticementSomething that attracts
- temptationUrge toward the unwise
- attractionPull toward something
- appealFormal review request
lure · glamour · glitter · dazzle · charm · beguilement · fascination · captivation
tawdriness
Showy yet cheap quality
- flashinessOstentatious showiness
- gaudinessTasteless, excessive ornamentation
- showinessOstentatious display quality
garishness · tackiness · kitsch · vulgarity · loudness · glitziness · brassiness · cheapness · tinsel · bling
shallowness
Lack of depth
- hollownessState of being empty inside
- emptinessAbsence of substance
- veneerDecorative outer layer
facade · surface · gloss · pretense · artifice · insubstantiality · flimsiness · speciousness · vacuousness · thinness
seductiveness
Power to entice
- enticementSomething that attracts
- temptationUrge toward the unwise
- attractionPull toward something
appeal · lure · glamour · glitter · dazzle · charm · beguilement · fascination · captivation · enchantment
- flashy fakesfake, sham, counterfeit, imitation, phony
meretriciousnessgenuineness
Quality of being real
authenticity · sincerity · substance · integrity · realness
meretriciousnessplainness
Unadorned, straightforward quality
simplicity · understatement · elegance · tastefulness · refinement
meretriciousnessvirtue
Moral goodness or merit
probity · wholesomeness · honorableness · incorruptibility · uprightness