as in cliches
an idea or expression that has been used by many people
an op-ed piece that's offers nothing but warmed-over chestnuts for solving the city's financial woes
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Recent Examples of chestnuts
Istanbul pulses with history—its skyline crowned with slender minarets, grand domes, and bustling bazaars filled with copperware, carpets, and the scent of roasted chestnuts.
—
Lewis Nunn, Forbes.com, 14 Aug. 2025
Woody and green aromas, followed by a taste that differs—mocha and figs and some roasted chestnuts.
—Tom Mullen, Forbes, 2 Mar. 2025
So UConn’s postseason chestnuts were once more extricated from the fire, the freshman performing to keep things alive.
—Dom Amore, Hartford Courant, 19 Feb. 2025
Street vendors hawked goods displayed on blankets spread on the sidewalk and sold steaming hot chestnuts from carts.
—New York Times, 9 Feb. 2025
Christmas Eve may be a good time to roast chestnuts on the fire (or maybe toast marshmallows), but Parker Solar Probe scientists have built their spacecraft to avoid getting burned by the sun.
—Tariq Malik, Space.com, 22 Dec. 2024
Miami doesn't roast chestnuts for Christmas.
—Martin Vassolo, Axios, 20 Dec. 2024
But chestnuts didn’t disappear.
—Martin Sorge, Chicago Tribune, 16 Dec. 2024
Lewis Nunn, Forbes.com, 14 Aug. 2025
Woody and green aromas, followed by a taste that differs—mocha and figs and some roasted chestnuts.
—Tom Mullen, Forbes, 2 Mar. 2025
So UConn’s postseason chestnuts were once more extricated from the fire, the freshman performing to keep things alive.
—Dom Amore, Hartford Courant, 19 Feb. 2025
Street vendors hawked goods displayed on blankets spread on the sidewalk and sold steaming hot chestnuts from carts.
—New York Times, 9 Feb. 2025
Christmas Eve may be a good time to roast chestnuts on the fire (or maybe toast marshmallows), but Parker Solar Probe scientists have built their spacecraft to avoid getting burned by the sun.
—Tariq Malik, Space.com, 22 Dec. 2024
Miami doesn't roast chestnuts for Christmas.
—Martin Vassolo, Axios, 20 Dec. 2024
But chestnuts didn’t disappear.
—Martin Sorge, Chicago Tribune, 16 Dec. 2024
Recent Examples of Synonyms for chestnuts
Noun
-
New novels are rightly praised for breaking with traditional forms and criticized for turning to stale formulas and cliches.—
Nathaniel Moore
September 10,
Literary Hub,
10 Sep. 2025
-
Just really not going to sit here and give some cliches.—
Bill Plunkett,
Oc Register,
6 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
Incidents of such poisoning saw a sharp decline when the Food and Drug Administration phased out the use of bromides in pharmaceuticals between the mid 70s and late 1980s.—
Mary Walrath-Holdridge,
USA Today,
13 Aug. 2025
Noun
-
While not specifically speculative fiction, the nonfiction narratives that students both read and produce serve as counter-narratives to the oppressive and harmful tropes in media more generally about Black girls and girlhood.—
The Editors,
JSTOR Daily,
10 Sep. 2025
-
Aside from fake dating, the novel is full of beloved, albeit cheesy, rom-com tropes.—
Clare Mulroy,
USA Today,
4 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Chestnuts.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/chestnuts. Accessed 17 Sep. 2025.
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