counterword
[ koun-ter-wurd ]
/ ˈkaʊn tərˌwɜrd /
noun
a word, often of short-lived popularity, widely used as an almost meaningless, automatic response.
a word that has come to be used with a meaning much less specific than that which it had originally, as swell, awful, or terrific.
RELATED WORDS
blend, compound, portmanteau, adage, banality, bromide, buzzword, commonplace, motto, platitude, proverb, saying, shibboleth, slogan, stereotype, truism, triviality, chestnut, corn, potboiler
Nearby words
- countervailing,
- countervailing duty,
- counterview,
- counterweigh,
- counterweight,
- counterwork,
- countess,
- counting,
- counting chamber,
- counting house
Origin of counterword
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019
Examples from the Web for counterword
Unhappily the black-artist has forgot the counterword, with which he might command this flood of sprites again to ebb.
Wilhelm Meister's Apprenticeship and Travels, Vol. I (of 2)|Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
counterword
/ (ˈkaʊntəˌwɜːd) /
noun
a word widely used in a sense much looser than its original meaning, such as tremendous or awful
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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