Pulpy describes something soft, thick, and somewhat mushy in texture, like the inside of an orange or a well-cooked tomato. When you squeeze an orange and feel the soft, fleshy segments inside, that's pulp. Orange juice with lots of pulp has bits of that soft fruit floating in it, while smooth orange juice has had all the pulp filtered out.

The word often describes overripe or damaged fruit that's gotten soft and squishy. A banana left too long becomes pulpy inside. Wood that's been soaked in water can turn pulpy and fall apart easily.

Pulpy also describes a style of cheap, exciting magazines and books printed on rough, thick paper made from wood pulp. These pulp magazines from the early 1900s featured adventure stories, mysteries, and science fiction written quickly to entertain readers. The paper was so cheap it turned yellow and crumbled with age. Today, people use “pulpy” to describe fast-paced, entertaining stories with lots of action and drama but not much literary depth. A pulpy detective novel might have car chases and mysterious villains but simple characters. It's the opposite of a carefully crafted literary masterpiece, and sometimes that's exactly what you want.