banal
[ buh-nal, -nahl, beyn-l ]
/ bəˈnæl, -ˈnɑl, ˈbeɪn l /
adjective
devoid of freshness or originality; hackneyed; trite: a banal and sophomoric treatment of courage on the frontier.
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RELATED WORDS
mundane, hackneyed, vapid, stupid, dumb, corny, trite, bland, blah, common, conventional, everyday, flat, hokey, humdrum, insipid, nothing, ordinary, pabulum, pedestrian
Nearby words
- ban-the-bomber,
- banaba,
- banaban,
- banach space,
- banak,
- banality,
- banalize,
- banally,
- banana,
- banana belt
Origin of banal
Synonym study
See commonplace.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019
banal
/ (bəˈnɑːl) /
adjective
lacking force or originality; trite; commonplace
Word Origin for banal
C18: from Old French: relating to compulsory feudal service, hence common to all, commonplace; from ban ban ²
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
banal
"trite, commonplace," 1840, from French banal, "belonging to a manor, common, hackneyed, commonplace," from Old French banel "communal" (13c.), from ban "decree; legal control; announcement; authorization; payment for use of a communal oven, mill, etc." (see ban (v.)). The modern sense evolved from the word's use in designating things like ovens or mills that belonged to feudal serfs, or else compulsory military service; in either case it was generalized in French through "open to everyone" to "commonplace, ordinary," to "trite, petty."
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper