hackneyed

adjective

hack·​neyed ˈhak-nēd 

: lacking in freshness or originality

hackneyed slogans

Did you know?

In his 1926 tome A Dictionary of Modern English Usage, lexicographer H. W. Fowler offers a good deal of advice under the heading “Hackneyed Phrases.” While some of the phrases he cautions against (“too funny for words,” “my better half”) will be familiar to most readers today, others (such as “hinc illae lacrimae”) have fallen into obscurity. Fowler was not the first usage writer to warn against the overuse of hackneyed (that is, trite or clichéd) phrases; a number of authors in the late 19th and early 20th century had similarly (hackneyed phrase alert) taken up the cudgels against trite and banal turns of phrase. In 1897, for example, Frederic Lawrence Knowles advised against using “agitate the tintinnabulatory,” and in 1917 Margaret Ashmun and Gerhard Lomer discouraged “the dreamy mazes of the waltz.” Were these hackneyed phrases so objected to that they became obsolete? This is unlikely, as the same manuals which object to long-dead expressions also object to “blushing bride,” “bated breath,” and “one fell swoop,” all of which have survived. Perhaps a more plausible explanation is that phrases come and go with time. This is, in a way, a pleasant explanation, for it means that the seemingly ubiquitous phrase you detest stands a fair chance of falling by the wayside. Only time will tell, as they say.

Synonyms of hackneyed

• stereotyped
• tired
• commonplace
• clichéd
• trite

Choose the Right Synonym for hackneyed

trite, hackneyed, stereotyped, threadbare mean lacking the freshness that evokes attention or interest.

trite applies to a once effective phrase or idea spoiled from long familiarity.

"you win some, you lose some" is a trite expression

hackneyed stresses being worn out by overuse so as to become dull and meaningless.

all of the metaphors and images in the poem are hackneyed

stereotyped implies falling invariably into the same pattern or form.

views of minorities that are stereotyped and out-of-date

threadbare applies to what has been used until its possibilities of interest have been totally exhausted.

a mystery novel with a threadbare plot

Examples of hackneyed in a Sentence

it's hackneyed, but true—the more you save the more you earn

Recent Examples on the Web

While not exactly a feminist screed, the script grants nary a free pass to the glut of hackneyed gender conventions in the golden-age canon without at least cracking a joke. —Naveen Kumar, Variety, 21 Apr. 2026

The plot never gets more complex than that at any point, but the game's use of these hackneyed story elements and themes is agile and smart. —Fran Ruiz, Space.com, 18 Apr. 2026

Wise knew that these hackneyed tools would get him nowhere. —Billie Bugara, Pitchfork, 7 Mar. 2026

Few parents can follow the hackneyed wisdom of living in the moment. —Yiyun Li, New Yorker, 1 Mar. 2026

Word History

Etymology

from past participle of hackney entry 3

First Known Use

1735, in the meaning defined above

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Kids Definition

hackneyed

adjective

hack·​neyed ˈhak-nēd 

: worn out from too much use : commonplace

a hackneyed expression