as in cliche
an idea or expression that has been used by many people
An op-ed piece that offers nothing but warmed-over chestnuts for solving the city's financial woes.
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for chestnut
Noun
-
Awarded a second-half penalty against Bremen, Patrik Schick and Exequiel Palacios squabbled over who should take it, in a cliche of team dysfunction.—
Sebastian Stafford-Bloor,
New York Times,
2 Sep. 2025 -
Of course, some cliches are nothing but lazy thinking.—
Stephanie Bunbury,
Deadline,
30 Aug. 2025
Noun
-
However, swapping out classic sodium chloride for sodium bromide is a solid way to give yourself acne, involuntary muscle spasms, and paranoid psychosis.—
Andrew Paul,
Popular Science,
14 Aug. 2025
-
Bromism, or high levels of bromide, was considered after a lab report and consultation with poison control, the report said.—
Doha Madani,
NBC news,
14 Aug. 2025
Noun
-
Instead, Jeffrey Gahler has turned budget hearings into a sideshow by attacking McCord for scribbling a French version of a familiar proverb during an April meeting.—
Aegis reader commentary,
Baltimore Sun,
21 Aug. 2025
-
In West African traditions, the drum serves as both a musical instrument and a talking messenger, transmitting proverbs, praises, and official announcements in a language that reinforces the chief’s authority and the community’s history.—
Felicia Appenteng,
semafor.com,
18 Aug. 2025
Noun
-
Aside from fake dating, the novel is full of beloved, albeit cheesy, rom-com tropes.—
Clare Mulroy,
USA Today,
4 Sep. 2025
-
Punishing yet satisfying combat In reliable fashion, Art of Vengeance makes use of dozens of storytelling tropes from across ninja media.—
Christopher Cruz,
Rolling Stone,
3 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
There is a truism that a good place to live is a good place to visit—and that relationship often creates a virtuous cycle of development.—
Jasmine Laws,
MSNBC Newsweek,
20 Aug. 2025
-
The 2025 session put a bit of a wrinkle in that truism.—
John C. Moritz,
Austin American Statesman,
30 July 2025
Noun
-
The accounts team logs in right on time, and the stupid dance of platitudes that precedes every meeting at every company around the world begins.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
5 Sep. 2025
-
Surreal flashbacks show us how Teddy’s ill mom (Alicia Silverstone) suffered at the hands of Michelle’s company, how the empty corporate platitudes offered in exchange for his family’s horror merely confirmed his belief that there was more to what was being said and what had been done.—
Bilge Ebiri,
Vulture,
28 Aug. 2025
Noun
-
Bigelow’s work is procedural to its core, and that this film is a speculative what-if is made all the more horrifying because of its banality.—
Ryan Lattanzio,
IndieWire,
2 Sep. 2025
-
Online, fans excoriated the bright lights and banality of the revamp so aggressively that the company’s chief marketing officer paid the Reddit forum a visit to quell concerns.—
Katherine Laidlaw,
HubSpot,
8 Aug. 2025
Noun
-
Since 1994 the percentage of Republicans who identify as very conservative or conservative has grown from around 60% to 77% with 18% saying moderate (down from around 32%) and, somewhat remarkably, 4% as liberal or very liberal (down from around 9%).—
Robert G. Eccles,
Forbes.com,
2 Sep. 2025
-
Critics may not crown it the season’s darling, but, as the saying goes, critics don’t vote for the Oscars.—
Clayton Davis,
Variety,
1 Sep. 2025
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Cite this Entry
“Chestnut.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/chestnut. Accessed 10 Sep. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share