as in sensational
arousing a strong and usually superficial interest or emotional reaction
letters to the editor criticizing the newspaper's sensationalistic reporting
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Recent Examples of sensationalistic
His 1983 version of Breathless, by the way, much despised by critics at the time but now prized by a growing cult of admirers, is a wonderful and deranged work, slick and sensationalistic in all the ways that Godard’s isn’t.
—
Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 4 Dec. 2025
The result is just old-fashioned cinematic fools’ gold, in which sensationalistic blather poses as social commentary.
—David Fear, Rolling Stone, 9 Oct. 2025
With a lesser interpreter, the movie might have been just a sensationalistic shocker, but Keaton brought integrity and emotional candor to Theresa’s messy search to define herself.
—David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 3 Sep. 2019
Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 4 Dec. 2025
The result is just old-fashioned cinematic fools’ gold, in which sensationalistic blather poses as social commentary.
—David Fear, Rolling Stone, 9 Oct. 2025
With a lesser interpreter, the movie might have been just a sensationalistic shocker, but Keaton brought integrity and emotional candor to Theresa’s messy search to define herself.
—David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 3 Sep. 2019
Recent Examples of Synonyms for sensationalistic
Adjective
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The risk is in presuming that anything subversive or sensational is also true and meaningful, and that anything conventional is a lie that must be smashed down.—
Laura K. Field,
The Atlantic,
5 Feb. 2026
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And then, Beyoncé, who has a stranglehold on excellence and can woo 100,000 with a look, shattered that bit of black-and-white history with a purple light, flames shooting up from the stage, and a sensational and sensual performance.—
Matthew Odam,
Austin American Statesman,
5 Feb. 2026
Adjective
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But times have changed, and this team of buffoons is forced to grapple with changing industry ethics and sensationalist journalism in its transition, all while Ron faces an identity crisis that challenges his bravado, his massive ego.—
Travis Bean,
Forbes.com,
22 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Sensationalistic.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/sensationalistic. Accessed 16 Feb. 2026.
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