variants
also cliche
as in stereotyped
used or heard so often as to be dull
a cliché tale of lust and betrayal among the fabulously rich
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
variants
also cliche
as in generalization
an idea or expression that has been used by many people
try to write a love story without resorting to well-worn clichés
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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.
Recent Examples of cliché
Marya E. Gates, IndieWire, 13 May 2026
Every Mother’s Day, politicians spout cliches celebrating all that moms do for our families.
—Nicole Varma, The Orlando Sentinel, 9 May 2026
The Flyers learned over games 4, 5 and 6 that the old cliche of the fourth game being the hardest to win is, in fact, usually the case.
—Kevin Kurz, New York Times, 1 May 2026
The workforce warnings, in particular, are getting louder, with a mix of smart alerts and a cacophony of cliches.
—Jeffrey Sonnenfeld, Fortune, 29 Apr. 2026
There’s a reason for the myriad cliches in baseball.
—Gabriel Burns, AJC.com, 15 Apr. 2026
Across the album, Blake uses hyper-specific details like this to make the project feel personal without being obvious or cliche.
—Donald Morrison, Pitchfork, 14 Apr. 2026
Matching furniture sets and too-small rugs are living room cliches to avoid.
—Sarah Lyon, The Spruce, 13 Apr. 2026
The oldest, most enduring cliche about government policy is the one about how budgets are political, not fiscal, documents.
—Business Columnist, Los Angeles Times, 7 Apr. 2026
Noun
As the film ends, the reason for its title becomes the worst cliche of all.
—Marya E. Gates, IndieWire, 13 May 2026
Every Mother’s Day, politicians spout cliches celebrating all that moms do for our families.
—Nicole Varma, The Orlando Sentinel, 9 May 2026
The Flyers learned over games 4, 5 and 6 that the old cliche of the fourth game being the hardest to win is, in fact, usually the case.
—Kevin Kurz, New York Times, 1 May 2026
The workforce warnings, in particular, are getting louder, with a mix of smart alerts and a cacophony of cliches.
—Jeffrey Sonnenfeld, Fortune, 29 Apr. 2026
There’s a reason for the myriad cliches in baseball.
—Gabriel Burns, AJC.com, 15 Apr. 2026
Across the album, Blake uses hyper-specific details like this to make the project feel personal without being obvious or cliche.
—Donald Morrison, Pitchfork, 14 Apr. 2026
Matching furniture sets and too-small rugs are living room cliches to avoid.
—Sarah Lyon, The Spruce, 13 Apr. 2026
The oldest, most enduring cliche about government policy is the one about how budgets are political, not fiscal, documents.
—Business Columnist, Los Angeles Times, 7 Apr. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for cliché
Adjective
-
In some cases, praise took on overtly stereotyped forms: words like 'love' were used disproportionately with female students, while 'powerful' appeared only for Black students.—
Rachel del Guidice,
FOXNews.com,
28 Apr. 2026
-
Latinos are a fundamental part of American history and culture, and one of the largest communities in the United States, yet their presence in Hollywood has long been limited, stereotyped, or overlooked.—
Jazz Tangcay,
Variety,
13 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
This streamlined, mapless approach improves the vehicle’s urban generalization capabilities for the self-driving system to adapt to cross-city and even cross-border deployments.—
Mrigakshi Dixit,
Interesting Engineering,
19 May 2026
-
Most leaders can’t afford to wait weeks for insights that could inform their next move, and can revert to relying on generalizations to guide them as a result.—
Alex Cooper,
Fortune,
16 May 2026
Adjective
-
The film, which stars Hannah Einbinder as a filmmaker tasked with revamping a tired summer camp horror franchise with its cryptic lead played by Gillian Anderson in tow, is set to make its way to theaters this August.—
Christian Zilko,
IndieWire,
14 May 2026
-
Each day, after teaching classes for a local extension office, taking online courses and caring for everyone, Denise is just tired.—
Jayme Fraser,
USA Today,
14 May 2026
Noun
-
Taiwan Beneath all the platitudes, there are still some simmering tensions.—
Selina Wang,
ABC News,
14 May 2026
-
The lyrics—elsewhere evocative—wilt dramatically, a slurry of platitudes.—
Linnie Greene,
Pitchfork,
29 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
Maybe so, but think of how badly Congress had stated those hackneyed ideas.—
Jill Lepore,
New Yorker,
4 May 2026
-
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
Noun
-
His deep arsenal gives him a chance to handle a truism of the craft.—
Tyler Kepner,
New York Times,
8 May 2026
-
Ever since, intelligence officers have ruefully invoked that truism whenever they’re blamed for a major screwup.—
Shane Harris,
The Atlantic,
5 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
Some, but not all, of those tropes are present in Spanish filmmaker Rodrigo Sorogoyen’s behind-the-scenes drama The Beloved (El Ser Querido), which manages to add a few welcome twists to the formula.—
Jordan Mintzer,
HollywoodReporter,
16 May 2026
-
The highlight, taking over most of the gallery space on 19th Street, is new paintings by Lisa Yuskavage, a brilliant inversion of the studio painting trope, looking as potent as anything she’s ever made.—
Nate Freeman,
Vanity Fair,
15 May 2026
Adjective
-
Over the past few years, Target has slipped from being a retail shining star to something far more commonplace.—
Pamela N. Danziger,
Forbes.com,
18 May 2026
-
There’s something disturbing about watching these already commonplace delusions about ChatGPT — Your particular version has a soul!—
Vulture,
Vulture,
17 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Cliché.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/clich%C3%A9. Accessed 21 May. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
