Cartoonish

Part of speech: adjective

Definitions

1. Exhibiting exaggerated traits and a playful aesthetic that emphasizes humor
2. Describing a manner characterized by whimsical exaggeration and simplicity to convey comedic elements
3. Having qualities that imitate or mimic the exaggerated and simplified features typical of cartoons

Etymology: "Cartoonish" is a plain combination: the noun "cartoon" with the adjective-forming suffix "-ish," which attaches the sense "resembling or having the qualities of" to a base. So it means something like "having the character of a cartoon." The suffix "-ish" has been used in English since Old English, where it appeared in words like "Englisc" and "reddish-type" formations, and it is still productive today, turning nouns into adjectives such as "childish" and "bookish." The base word has a more surprising path. "Cartoon" comes from Italian "cartone," meaning a large sheet of strong paper, and it was originally an art term for a full-scale preparatory drawing made for a painting, fresco or tapestry. Only in the 19th century did the word shift to humorous drawings in magazines and newspapers, and later to animated films. "Cartoonish" therefore carries the sense of exaggeration and simplification from those later comic and animated traditions, even though the root once referred to serious studies for finished artworks.

Synonyms: comical, animated, whimsical, exaggerated, grotesque

Antonyms: realistic, serious, subdued, sombre, naturalistic