Definition of "schmaltz" [schmaltz]

• Informal Excessively sentimental art or music. (noun)
• Informal Maudlin sentimentality. (noun)
• Liquid fat, especially chicken fat. (noun)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "If homemade schmaltz is unavailable, you can use Nyafat or Margarine if you want to keep it kosher parve or meat, but if not or for a dairy meal, use softened butter instead."
• "The difference between great sentimentalism like Yesterday, Hey Jude or Let it Be and schmaltz is subtle but huge and the talent to pull it off is very rare."
• "GROSS: Bobby Braddock, the word schmaltz is probably not a word that's used a lot in country music."