glibber; glibbest
1
a
: showing little forethought or preparation : offhand
glib answers
b
: marked by ease and informality : nonchalant
c
: lacking depth and substance : superficial
glib solutions to knotty problems
2
: marked by ease and fluency in speaking or writing often to the point of being insincere or deceitful
a glib politician
3
archaic : smooth, slippery
glibly adverb
glibness noun

Examples of glib in a Sentence

Or they could have saddled us with "The Stranger," which had the mitigating charm of being glib and pretentious and would thus have kept the kids who were obviously going to end up at Bard happy. Joe Queenan, New York Times Book Review, 3 June 2007
The problem was that the candidate anticipated all the questions, knew all the answers and tended to pop out the reply the moment the question was asked; it made him seem like a smart aleck, too glib. William Safire, New York Times Magazine, 16 June 1991
Some of the glibbest persons in the nation are oddly tongue-tied when the Bible is brought up. Garry Wills, Under God, 1990
I expected a glib ladies' man, which he's not. He is an introspective man with deep emotions. Loni Anderson, quoted in People Weekly, 6 Nov. 1989
Politicians need to do more than provide glib answers to difficult questions. the actor's glib portrayal of a drug addict
Recent Examples on the Web The systematization of something so multifaceted felt a little glib, but Pixar knows how to entertain, and so Inside Out pushed my buttons with practiced ease. David Sims, The Atlantic, 13 June 2024 But the confidence and craftsmanship invested in Crash are, ultimately, the problem, because the infuriatingly contrived screenplay and hushed seriousness conspire to produce a risible portrait of complex social issues reduced to glib plot points. Will Leitch, Vulture, 11 Mar. 2024 There will be pain, and no one should be glib about that. New York Daily News Editorial Board, New York Daily News, 21 Feb. 2024 Soufan, however, passes over almost all discussion of religion and tends to pathologize religious sentiment in glib tones. Graeme Wood, Foreign Affairs, 15 Aug. 2017 See all Example Sentences for glib 

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'glib.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

probably modification of Low German glibberig slippery

First Known Use

1584, in the meaning defined at sense 1b

Time Traveler
The first known use of glib was in 1584

Dictionary Entries Near glib

Cite this Entry

“Glib.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/glib. Accessed 2 Jul. 2024.

Kids Definition

glib

adjective
glibber; glibbest
: speaking or spoken with careless ease and often with little regard for truth
a glib excuse
glibly adverb
glibness noun

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