cliché
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cli·ché
also cli·che (klē-shā′)n.
1. A trite or overused expression or idea: "Even while the phrase was degenerating to cliché in ordinary public use ... scholars were giving it increasing attention" (Anthony Brandt).
2. A person or character whose behavior is predictable or superficial: "There is a young explorer ... who turns out not to be quite the cliche expected" (John Crowley).
adj.
Usage Problem Clichéd.
[French, past participle of clicher, to stereotype (imitative of the sound made when the matrix is dropped into molten metal to make a stereotype plate).]
Synonyms: cliché, bromide, platitude, truism
These nouns denote an expression or idea that has lost its originality or force through overuse: a short story weakened by clichés; the bromide that we are what we eat; a eulogy full of platitudes; a once-original thought that is now a truism.
These nouns denote an expression or idea that has lost its originality or force through overuse: a short story weakened by clichés; the bromide that we are what we eat; a eulogy full of platitudes; a once-original thought that is now a truism.
Usage Note: The use of cliché as an adjective meaning "clichéd" goes back to the 1950s. Nonetheless, this usage is traditionally considered improper, and the majority of the Usage Panel agrees with that assessment. In 2011, 79% of the Panel considered the sentence It would sound very cliché to say he died as he lived, helping people to be unacceptable. About a fifth of the Panelists, however, found this usage either somewhat or completely acceptable. As is the case with most nouns, the use of cliché in compounds, such as cliché-ridden, meaning "full of clichés," is perfectly acceptable. The use of cliché as an adjective is alluring because English has borrowed some é-final adjectives from French participles, such as passé and recherché. Because the overwhelming use of cliché is as a noun, however, the English adjective was originally formed directly from that noun by adding -d, the same process that gives us words such as barefaced, single-spaced, and fated.
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
cliché
(ˈkliːʃeɪ)n
1. (Linguistics) 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.
2. an idea, action, or habit that has become trite from overuse
3. (Printing, Lithography & Bookbinding) printing chiefly Brit a stereotype or electrotype plate
[C19: from French, from clicher to stereotype; imitative of the sound made by the matrix when it is dropped into molten metal]
ˈclichéd, ˈcliché'd adj
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014
cli•ché
or cli•che
(kliˈʃeɪ, klɪ-)n.
1. a trite, stereotyped expression, as sadder but wiser, or strong as an ox.
2. a trite or hackneyed plot, character development, use of form, musical style, etc.
3. anything that has become trite or commonplace through overuse.
adj. 4. clichéd.
[1825–35; < French: stereotype plate, stencil, cliché, n. use of past participle of clicher to make such a plate, said to be imitative of the sound of the metal pressed against the matrix]
Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.
ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:
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| Noun | 1. | cliche - a trite or obvious remark comment, remark, input - a statement that expresses a personal opinion or belief or adds information; "from time to time she contributed a personal comment on his account" truism - an obvious truth |
Based on WordNet 3.0, Farlex clipart collection. © 2003-2012 Princeton University, Farlex Inc.
cliché
noun platitude, stereotype, commonplace, banality, truism, bromide, old saw, hackneyed phrase, chestnut (informal) I've learned that the cliché about life not being fair is true.
Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002
cliché
nounA trite expression or idea:
The American Heritage® Roget's Thesaurus. Copyright © 2013, 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Translations
كليشيه: عِبارَه مُتَكَرِّرَه
klišéfráze
clichéfloskel
kliseelatteus
kliše
klisja, tugga
clişeu
basmakalıp sözklişe
Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005
Collins English/French Electronic Resource. © HarperCollins Publishers 2005
Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007
Collins Italian Dictionary 1st Edition © HarperCollins Publishers 1995
cliché
(ˈkliːʃei) , ((American) kli:ˈʃei) noun a phrase which has been used too often, and has become meaningless.
Kernerman English Multilingual Dictionary © 2006-2013 K Dictionaries Ltd.