The quality of being cheesy; excessive fakeness, theatrical overacting, or poor taste; alternatively, the state of being cheese-like.
From 'cheesy' + noun-forming suffix '-ness'. The slang meaning likely emerged in early 1900s entertainment criticism.
Every generation complains about cheesiness in entertainment—1970s disco was 'cheesy,' then '80s hairbands, then '90s boy bands. It's really just another way to say 'out of style,' but 'cheesy' sounds funnier!
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