soft-core

adjective

Definition of soft-corenext
as in hard-core

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Example Sentences

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 soft-core The selection will open with a pre-festival screening of Tinto Brass’ soft-core thriller Col Cuore in Gola (Deadly Sweet) (1967). — Scott Roxborough, HollywoodReporter, 3 July 2026 All as much fans of soft-core nineties femme fatale films as experimental cinema. — Carly Tagen-Dye, PEOPLE, 3 June 2026 For individuals, soft-core KPIs might include the employee’s personal brand reputation, visibility on professional platforms or involvement in external community projects. — Filomena Di Luise, Forbes.com, 15 July 2025 The film felt like a dispatch from a cinematic world that no longer existed — streamed quietly into a culture now fluent in soft-core stylization but less interested in its emotional stakes. — arkansasonline.com, 10 July 2025 This is the character most relatable to the man who founded a media company whose sole purpose was to manipulate women into taking their tops off and engage in soft-core pornography on camera and cut them out of the earnings. — Ryan Coleman, EW.com, 7 Dec. 2024 Ranking Coppola’s 23 features — his 1962 soft-core Tonight for Sure is not included, nor is his misbegotten New York Stories short feature or the Disney attraction Captain EO — was a difficult proposition. — Scott Tobias, Vulture, 27 Sep. 2024 The agencies that dole out state money to public charger companies — the California Energy Commission and the California Public Utilities Commission — have taken a soft-core approach to holding the companies responsible. — Los Angeles Times, 3 Sep. 2024 Their intercourse isn’t soft-core like Bound but features Marian’s shy, sly, self-consciousness. — Armond White, National Review, 31 July 2024
Recent Examples of Synonyms for soft-core
  1. hard-core
  2. pornographic
  3. erotic
  4. adult
  5. sexy
  6. mature
  7. X-rated
Adjective
  • After arriving on a private jet, Rebecca, Zelda, and Higgins have to sit with an enthusiastic member of the hoi polloi, a hard-core fan who’s made a trek to be at the game but has somehow escaped from the cheap seats to sit with them.
    — Keith Phipps, Vulture, 30 Sep. 2026
  • The loudest hard-core German music can reach 107dB when measured with a decibel meter, which is incredibly loud (ear-damagingly so).
    — Florence Ion, PC Magazine, 19 Aug. 2026
Definition of hard-core
Adjective
  • Current Florida law says a school district can review and remove a book after a complaint has been made that a book is pornographic, obscene or isn’t age appropriate.
    — Ana Goñi-Lessan, Sun Sentinel, 24 Sep. 2026
  • The teacher admitted to having inappropriate conversations and sending pornographic videos to the former student.
    — Christian Cervantes, AZCentral.com, 20 Sep. 2026
Definition of pornographic
Adjective
  • Showalter, who has undergone a surprising career shift from alt comedian to journeyman director of women’s pictures, clearly wants to try his hand at a lurid erotic thriller.
    — Richard Lawson, HollywoodReporter, 30 Sep. 2026
  • She is also attached to star in and executive produce Teach Me, an erotic thriller series coming to Peacock.
    — Lily Brown, PEOPLE, 28 Sep. 2026
Definition of erotic
Adjective
  • While on the ground, the eagle was seen in a fight with two sub-adult eagles, according to the nonprofit.
    — Assistant Editor, Los Angeles Times, 20 July 2026
  • The encounter is rare because the vast majority of sub-adult and adult sharks end up at Cape Cod, Dodd said.
    — Julia Jacobo, ABC News, 7 July 2026
Definition of adult
Adjective
  • The house holds the dangerous secrets of its inhabitants and is as much a character, so when the project was greenlit, finding the ideal dwelling was key to creating the right mysterious-yet-sexy atmosphere the narrative required.
    — Juliet Izon, Architectural Digest, 2 Oct. 2026
  • In Martinez’s versions, Mirabai is indomitable, sexy, exceedingly earnest, sometimes funny, always speaking at the border of body and spirit.
    — Craig Morgan Teicher, Literary Hub, 1 Oct. 2026
Definition of sexy
Adjective
  • So many young people, for better or for worse, are exposed to [mature themes].
    — Selome Hailu, Variety, 3 Oct. 2026
  • Vestas still holds key advantages, according to Dal Poz, including a mature supply chain, a long track record, and the confidence of lenders.
    — Sam Birchall, Fortune, 2 Oct. 2026
Definition of mature
Adjective
  • The content of its productions has included legitimate theater, vaudeville, burlesque, striptease, movies (many X-rated), classical music and jazz as well as occasional forays into boxing, bodybuilding and politics.
    — Dan Kelly, Kansas City Star, 21 Sep. 2025
  • For the first seven years of the rating system (1969-1975), nearly half of the top films (33 of 70) were R- or X-rated.
    — Tom Brueggemann, IndieWire, 26 July 2024
Definition of X-rated

Browse Nearby Words

soft-boiled
soft-core
softcover
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Cite this Entry

“Soft-core.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/soft-core. Accessed 9 Oct. 2026.

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