stereotype

American  

[ster-ee-uh-tahyp, steer-] / ˈstɛr i əˌtaɪp, ˈstɪər- /

noun

1. a simplified and standardized conception or image invested with special meaning and held in common by members of a group.

   Cowboys and Indians are American stereotypes.

2. a set form; convention.

   Most important for lexicographers are the idiomatic stereotypes whose meaning cannot be inferred from knowledge of the meanings of the individual items.

3. Printing.

   1. a process, now often replaced by more advanced methods, for making metal printing plates by taking a mold of composed type or the like in papier-mâché or other material and then taking from this mold a cast in type metal.

   2. a plate made by this process.

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verb (used with object)

stereotyped, stereotyping

1. to characterize or regard as a stereotype.

   The actor has been stereotyped as a villain.

   Synonyms:

   typecast, label, categorize

2. to give a fixed form to.

3. Printing. to make a stereotype of.

stereotype British  

/ ˌstɛrɪə ˈtɪpɪk, ˌstɪər-, ˈstɛrɪəˌtaɪp, ˈstɪər- /

noun

1. 1. a method of producing cast-metal printing plates from a mould made from a forme of type matter in papier-mâché or some other material

   2. the plate so made

2. another word for stereotypy

3. an idea, trait, convention, etc, that has grown stale through fixed usage

4. sociol a set of inaccurate, simplistic generalizations about a group that allows others to categorize them and treat them accordingly

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verb

1. 1. to make a stereotype of

   2. to print from a stereotype

2. to impart a fixed usage or convention to

stereotype ¹ Cultural  

1. A too-simple and therefore distorted image of a group, such as “Football players are stupid” or “The English are cold and unfriendly people.”

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stereotype ² Cultural  

1. A generalization, usually exaggerated or oversimplified and often offensive, that is used to describe or distinguish a group.

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Other Word Forms

• stereotyper noun
• stereotypic adjective
• stereotypical adjective
• stereotypist noun

Etymology

Origin of stereotype

First recorded in 1790–1800; stereo- + -type

Example Sentences

"He kind of just fit a masculine action-star stereotype... I'm pretty much positive none of us could name a movie he'd been in."

From BBC • Mar. 20, 2026

It’s not the stereotype on its own that is the problem, he says: “it’s the predicament that matters.”

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 2, 2026

And perhaps that’s the real lesson hidden beneath the pasta stereotype: Italian cuisine isn’t just about pleasure.

From Salon • Jan. 24, 2026

"There is a persistent stereotype about winter fuel costs - you tend to call to mind an older couple or a pensioner couple," he added.

From BBC • Jan. 6, 2026

The man who glowered before him conformed to the classic stereotype of Marine barber Ben had envisioned in his mind: the face was saturnine, pock-marked, and the mouth was grim.

From "The Great Santini" by Pat Conroy

Related Words

• pattern