commonplace

[ kom-uhn-pleys ]

adjective

1. ordinary; undistinguished or uninteresting; without individuality:

   a commonplace person.

2. trite; hackneyed; platitudinous:

   a commonplace remark.

noun

1. a well-known, customary, or obvious remark; a trite or uninteresting saying.

   Synonyms: stereotype, platitude, bromide, cliché

2. anything common, ordinary, or uninteresting.
3. Archaic. a place or passage in a book or writing noted as important for reference or quotation.

commonplace

/ ˈkɒmənˌpleɪs /

adjective

1. ordinary; everyday

   commonplace duties

2. dull and obvious; trite

   commonplace prose

noun

1. something dull and trite, esp a remark; platitude; truism
2. a passage in a book marked for inclusion in a commonplace book, etc
3. an ordinary or common thing

Derived Forms

• ˈcommonˌplaceness, noun

Other Words From

• common·placely adverb
• common·placeness noun
• un·common·place adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of commonplace¹

1525–35; translation of Latin locus commūnis, itself translation of Greek koinòs tópos

Word History and Origins

Origin of commonplace¹

C16: translation of Latin locus commūnis argument of wide application, translation of Greek koinos topos

Synonym Study

Commonplace, banal, hackneyed, stereotyped, trite describe words, remarks, and styles of expression that are lifeless and uninteresting. Commonplace characterizes thought that is dull, ordinary, and platitudinous: commonplace and boring. Something is banal that seems inane, insipid, and pointless: a heavy-handed and banal affirmation of the obvious. Hackneyed characterizes something that seems stale and worn out through overuse: a hackneyed comparison. Stereotyped emphasizes the fact that situations felt to be similar invariably call for the same thought in exactly the same form and the same words: so stereotyped as to seem automatic. Trite describes something that was originally striking and apt, but which has become so well-known and been so commonly used that all interest has been worn out of it: true but trite.

Example Sentences

Teachers and faculty were experimenting with now commonplace consumer technologies like speech recognition and virtual reality to create immersive learning experiences.

From TechCrunch

Temperature checks are commonplace in Turkey and many other countries, and are quickly becoming more popular in the US.

From Quartz

Today, gliding is so commonplace, we do not ask ourselves what’s happening when an airplane glides or, for that matter, when a helicopter does.

From Popular-Science

Such systems may seem commonplace today within e-commerce, but they form the very backbone of digital health companies.

From Fortune

Even after e-commerce became commonplace, many luxury companies remained cautious about jumping into digital sales.

From Quartz

When it comes to setting up a reward, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service considers “$50,000 commonplace.”

From The Daily Beast

The god with horns—half human, half beast—is commonplace throughout the ancient Near East.

From The Daily Beast

In a press release accompanying the video, Roberts said that such behavior is commonplace on New York streets—and in her own life.

From The Daily Beast

The practice did not become truly commonplace until the 1930s when George Gallup and others came on the scene.

From The Daily Beast

In reality, economic hardship is much more commonplace, and its appearance is more subtle.

From The Daily Beast

My memory is well stored, but unfortunately I have never kept a diary or commonplace book of any kind.

From Project Gutenberg

The little foolish words, so sweetly commonplace, fell like balm upon an open wound.

From Project Gutenberg

Behind the commonplace sentences, the hidden wordless Play also drew on towards its Curtain.

From Project Gutenberg

Well, under the mask of bonhomie, which made me believe him to be a worthy man, was concealed the most commonplace nature.

From Project Gutenberg

Like other commonplace mortals, however, my instincts fight for the only solution of happiness I know anything about.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• customary
• mundane
• normal
• obvious
• prevalent
• typical