1
as in boring
lacking in qualities that make for spirit and character
unlike their early work, the band's latest offering is banal and uninspiring
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2
as in cliche
used or heard so often as to be dull
please find new ways of phrasing your thoughts instead of relying on banal expressions
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of banal
The banal village tunes that Mahler altered into sinister mock vulgarities—did these not recall the raffish klezmer bands, the wandering musicians who played at shtetl weddings?
—
David Denby, The Atlantic, 1 Apr. 2025
The main topic of conversation was how the duo turned a photo album featuring the banal daily activities of workers at Auschwitz-Birkenau into a searing play.
—Jessica Gelt, Los Angeles Times, 21 Mar. 2025
This is true in a banal financial way: compared with its average price during the Biden Administration, Palantir’s stock has appreciated nearly six hundred per cent.
—Gideon Lewis-Kraus, The New Yorker, 19 Feb. 2025
That’s the kind of thing that happened in a banal, regular place.
—The Editors Of Ad, Architectural Digest, 7 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for banal
David Denby, The Atlantic, 1 Apr. 2025
The main topic of conversation was how the duo turned a photo album featuring the banal daily activities of workers at Auschwitz-Birkenau into a searing play.
—Jessica Gelt, Los Angeles Times, 21 Mar. 2025
This is true in a banal financial way: compared with its average price during the Biden Administration, Palantir’s stock has appreciated nearly six hundred per cent.
—Gideon Lewis-Kraus, The New Yorker, 19 Feb. 2025
That’s the kind of thing that happened in a banal, regular place.
—The Editors Of Ad, Architectural Digest, 7 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for banal
Recent Examples of Synonyms for banal
Adjective
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Belief that your institution is exempt from the hard, functional and often boring parts of the job leads to a slow decline.—
Carl Anka,
New York Times,
22 May 2025
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As a small-market team, for the majority of my life, Indiana has been looked at as boring or whatever the case may be.—
Peter Sblendorio,
New York Daily News,
20 May 2025
Adjective
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From there, the Angels have been one of MLB’s most bland and underachieving franchises.—
Tom Krasovic,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
12 May 2025
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Charlie Byrd of New Babylon is almost as forgettable and bland.—
Erik Kain,
Forbes.com,
11 May 2025
Adjective
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Their negative stereotyped reputation seems to follow them like ageism follows older employees or sexism follows female employees.—
Bryan Robinson,
Forbes.com,
19 Apr. 2025
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At the time, Latinos were often cast in stereotyped roles with heavy accents and largely denied the opportunity to direct features.—
Maximilíano Durón,
ARTnews.com,
17 Mar. 2025
Adjective
-
But the insipid Premier League displays that have pushed the club to the lower reaches of the table mean there is a scarcity of belief that such an outcome will come to pass.—
Zak Garner-Purkis,
Forbes.com,
23 Apr. 2025
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Bored of an increasingly insipid Premier League season?—
Nick Miller,
New York Times,
7 Apr. 2025
Adjective
-
Some victims are already tired of fighting this fight.—
Ashley Belanger – May 19,
ArsTechnica,
19 May 2025
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Susan Shalabi was exhausted - tired of traveling halfway around the world from Amman to Asuncion, tired of fighting against the soccer establishment.—
Samindra Kunti,
Forbes.com,
18 May 2025
Adjective
-
The bristles of the brush manually sweep away dull, rough, flaky skin cells.—
Angela Palmer,
Verywell Health,
20 May 2025
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There’s an effort from the developer, Far Out Games, to tell a captivating noirish story here but the cutscenes and dialogue are painfully dull.—
Joshua Lamb,
Forbes.com,
20 May 2025
Adjective
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Attacks like this are commonplace in today’s digital world, where efficiency-seeking employees can spin up new SaaS applications with push-button ease.—
Ofer Klein,
Forbes.com,
7 May 2025
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Merz’s Christian Democratic Union (CDU) won February’s election, but failed to pick up enough seats to govern outright – an outcome that is commonplace in Germany’s diverse political environment.—
Rob Picheta,
CNN Money,
6 May 2025
Adjective
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Of course, all that excitement does get tiring after a while, and the dogs in side B eventually wind down for a brief nap.—
Jason D. Greenblatt,
MSNBC Newsweek,
2 Apr. 2025
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At-home blowouts are hard; even when armed with the right tutorials and top-of-the-line tools, all the maneuvering gets tiring quickly.—
Kylee McGuigan,
Vogue,
12 Mar. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Banal.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/banal. Accessed 27 May. 2025.
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