BOOKISH Synonyms: 42 Similar and Opposite Words

bookish

adjective

ˈbu̇-kish

Definition of bookish

as in literary

suggestive of the vocabulary used in books "fealty" is a bookish synonym for "loyalty"

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Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of bookish The Album, Bryce Savage’s not-so-bookish gurglefest about femme fatales. — Kieran Press-Reynolds, Pitchfork, 25 June 2026 The novel follows Harriet Bancroft, a bookish wallflower compiling a dictionary of slang. — Angelina Mazza, Vulture, 19 June 2026 There are football dads and Lego dads, bookish dads and surfer dads, trans dads and gay dads, young dads and old dads. — Joshua Rothman, New Yorker, 19 June 2026 Patel grew up in a small village in the middle of England, performed with The Young Actors Company in Cambridge and turned professional at 17 — spending the next nine years playing the quiet, bookish Tamwar Masood on the British soap EastEnders. — Seija Rankin, HollywoodReporter, 10 June 2026 See All Example Sentences for bookish

Recent Examples of Synonyms for bookish

literary

Adjective

In the 1968 essay A Native Hill, Berry wrote about his decision to leave behind the New York literary world just two years into his career, in favor of his home county in Kentucky.

— Tilda Wilson, NPR, 1 Sep. 2026
This debut feature is a semi-autobiographical film about a young woman working as an intern at a literary magazine in New York who is vying for acceptance in the upper crust literary world.

— Brian Welk, IndieWire, 31 Aug. 2026

Definition of literary

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booking

bookish

bookishness

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“Bookish.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bookish. Accessed 2 Sep. 2026.

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Synonyms of bookish

adjective

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