cliché
or cli·che
a trite, stereotyped expression; a sentence or phrase, usually expressing a popular or common thought or idea, that has lost originality, ingenuity, and impact by long overuse, as sadder but wiser, or strong as an ox.
(in art, literature, drama, etc.) a trite or hackneyed plot, character development, use of color, musical expression, etc.
anything that has become trite or commonplace through overuse.
British Printing.
a stereotype or electrotype plate.
a reproduction made in a like manner.
trite; hackneyed; stereotyped; clichéd.
Origin of cliché
1Other words for cliché
Words Nearby cliché
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
How to use cliché in a sentence
Yes, it’s practically a cliché these days, as meditation gets lobbed at us as the cure for everything from overeating to the pain of tough workouts.
I have acted out my favorite athlete cliché, the one in which a player emerges from the offseason claiming to be in the best shape of his life.
Tallying up a year of loss: A lot of pounds, too many loved ones, countless connections | Jerry Brewer | December 27, 2020 | Washington PostFor dancers like Krishnan — who has lived in North America for the past 30 years — it’s still frustrating when he’s “boxed into annoying” clichés that ask him to act out his heritage.
No Dirty Dancing: India’s Classical Dancers Break Caste Taboos | Charu Kasturi | December 4, 2020 | OzyOne that also would fit right in, as the gear-copy cliché goes, at the bar afterward.
At a time when we’ve already exhausted all the clichés about the trials of 2020, Kipchoge losing a marathon seems like further proof that the time is out of joint.
Eliud Kipchoge’s Streak Comes to an End in London | Martin Fritz Huber | October 5, 2020 | Outside Online
Normally, the idea that a work is “timeless” is both praise and empty cliche.
Or maybe both cultures got off on a glorious combination of cliche and novelty, even if they disagreed on which was which.
I'm not sure that artist-chosen shows are of that much curatorial or art-historical use, and anyway they've become a cliche.
This is a very different situation that cannot be wished away by an increasingly cliche-ridden "moral defense of capitalism."
We Need a Visionary Like Margaret Thatcher for our 21st Century Challenges | David Frum | April 8, 2013 | THE DAILY BEASTI realize how cliche and seemingly insufficient that sounds.
Von Schlichten described the situation succinctly, in an ancient and unprintable military cliche.
Uller Uprising | Henry Beam Piper, John D. Clark and John F. CarrThe beautiful casts of the French medals known to all electrotypers as Cliche moulds are in the alloy No. 3.
As the cliche goes, "With enough eyeballs, all bugs are shallow."
Little Brother | Cory DoctorowFirst, Engraved plate or Cliche representing the ornament with which the edge is to be decorated.
The Progress of the Marbling Art | Josef HalferApart from the comfortable cliche in which she was seen enfolded, Sanchia pleased the eye.
Rest Harrow | Maurice Hewlett
British Dictionary definitions for cliché
/ (ˈkliːʃeɪ) /
a word or expression that has lost much of its force through overexposure, as for example the phrase: it's got to get worse before it gets better
an idea, action, or habit that has become trite from overuse
printing, mainly British a stereotype or electrotype plate
Origin of cliché
1Derived forms of cliché
- clichd or clich'd, adjective
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
Cultural definitions for cliché
A much used expression that has lost its freshness and descriptive power. Some clichés are “I thank you from the bottom of my heart” and “It's only a drop in the bucket.”
The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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