Meanings
nounsoftcore (uncountable)
- uncountablePornography that does not contain depictions of explicit sexual penetration.
adjectivesoftcore (comparative more softcore, superlative most softcore)
comparative more softcore · superlative most softcore
- slangusuallyLess intense, committed or aggressive than hardcore.
Distinct from hardcore punks, softcore punks expressed less commitment to punk values […]
1999, Lauraine Leblanc, Pretty in Punk: Girls' Gender Resistance in a Boys' Subculture, page 55
Synonyms & antonyms
Opposite
Origin
From soft + core, by analogy with hardcore.
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
APA
softcore. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/softcore
MLA
“softcore.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/softcore. Accessed November 2, 2026.
Chicago
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “softcore,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/softcore.
Source: softcore on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.