variants
also cliches
as in tropes
an idea or expression that has been used by many people
try to write a love story without resorting to well-worn clichés
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Recent Examples of clichés
Hedda’s romantic picture — of Lovborg dying magnificently, with Dionysian vine leaves in his hairs, from a bullet of one of her own guns — smacks of the same literary cliches that has Emma fantasizing about a torchlight wedding at midnight.
—
Theater Critic, Los Angeles Times, 25 Feb. 2026
Lines can be set for how many political cliches Trump uses, the number of interruptions from the audience, the total times a person is shown on camera, etc.
—James Powel, USA Today, 24 Feb. 2026
His voice waxed poetic about Louisiana and its beauty while also critiquing the cliches rendered as the only acceptable terms to discuss a place that exceeds description.
—Literary Hub, 20 Feb. 2026
The Western is sort of stoked with a forge full of cliches.
—Scott Roxborough, HollywoodReporter, 12 Feb. 2026
The cliches of Hollywood endings notwithstanding, Cumming is happy and at peace.
—Jonathan Borge, InStyle, 29 Jan. 2026
So, as media day unfolded Saturday, the coach offered a flow of cliches and sayings.
—Noah White, Miami Herald, 17 Jan. 2026
Guttural noises aside, Romo was also called out for his use of cliches and what some said were obvious calls.
—Skyler Caruso, PEOPLE, 12 Jan. 2026
For an attorney’s brand to really stand out in the marketplace, their billboard has to go beyond old cliches.
—Adam M. Rosen, thehustle.co, 12 Dec. 2025
Theater Critic, Los Angeles Times, 25 Feb. 2026
Lines can be set for how many political cliches Trump uses, the number of interruptions from the audience, the total times a person is shown on camera, etc.
—James Powel, USA Today, 24 Feb. 2026
His voice waxed poetic about Louisiana and its beauty while also critiquing the cliches rendered as the only acceptable terms to discuss a place that exceeds description.
—Literary Hub, 20 Feb. 2026
The Western is sort of stoked with a forge full of cliches.
—Scott Roxborough, HollywoodReporter, 12 Feb. 2026
The cliches of Hollywood endings notwithstanding, Cumming is happy and at peace.
—Jonathan Borge, InStyle, 29 Jan. 2026
So, as media day unfolded Saturday, the coach offered a flow of cliches and sayings.
—Noah White, Miami Herald, 17 Jan. 2026
Guttural noises aside, Romo was also called out for his use of cliches and what some said were obvious calls.
—Skyler Caruso, PEOPLE, 12 Jan. 2026
For an attorney’s brand to really stand out in the marketplace, their billboard has to go beyond old cliches.
—Adam M. Rosen, thehustle.co, 12 Dec. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for clichés
Noun
-
There are some rom-com tropes that do fit with this relationship, and then a lot that don’t, and Colin, over the course of the movie, comes to learn about those that don’t necessarily fit.—
Roxana Hadadi,
Vulture,
27 Feb. 2026
-
But, to get there, Brontë enlists some of the ubiquitous tropes of her time—the foundling hero, for example—only to ruthlessly unravel them.—
Radhika Jones,
New Yorker,
26 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Pestaina also cautioned against broad generalizations about savings.—
Liz Neporent,
ABC News,
25 Feb. 2026
-
If there are any generalizations to be made about how different areas raise different types of players, Latson is qualified to make them.—
Rebecca Shore Winn,
Southern Living,
18 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
The stump speech that voters — or would-be voters — get about this time of year entails platitudes about exercising rights, not sitting on the sidelines, using your voice and so on.—
The Editorial Board,
Chicago Tribune,
1 Mar. 2026
-
Many use cases are still being deployed or piloted, and the agency’s AI database is filled with jargon and platitudes that, in many instances, can be interpreted in multiple ways.—
Matteo Wong,
The Atlantic,
13 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
The play isn’t subtle; the final sequence leans hard on truisms about addiction and trauma, which are affecting but overly explicit.—
Sheldon Pearce,
New Yorker,
20 Feb. 2026
-
One of the truisms in the past for Team Canada at some best-on-best events is needing a few games to find its game.—
Pierre LeBrun,
New York Times,
12 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
As far back as the Victorian era, exchanging a few banalities was part of a veritable social code—a way of signaling both politeness and boundaries.—
Jeanne Ballion,
Vogue,
27 Dec. 2025
-
Written by Noah Oppenheim, Bigelow’s real-time thriller about the banalities and actualities of a fictional-in-premise-only nuclear attack on the United States is Netflix’s best horse in the race at the Oscars this year.—
Ryan Lattanzio,
IndieWire,
19 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
This movie, based on a real-life 1940s women's professional baseball team, was ahead of its time in dispelling gender stereotypes.—
Karen Cicero,
Parents,
5 Mar. 2026
-
The direction reduces the lead performances to flash and flare, while actors in supporting roles are left inhabiting stereotypes.—
Richard Brody,
New Yorker,
4 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
Despite their clear affection for these women, the Dardenne brothers never sugarcoat their characters’ unenviable circumstance or latch onto phony bromides to alleviate our anxiety.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
16 Jan. 2026
-
There is a reason why the apocalyptic bromides about the state of print haven’t come to fruition, other than for disposable periodicals and newspapers.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
24 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
Almonds, chestnuts, walnuts, hazelnuts, chia, and flax are rich in magnesium and omega-3s, helping to support nervous-system and hormonal balance.—
Mélanie Defouilloy,
Vogue,
24 Feb. 2026
-
One programmer joked that his early sketches of the Goombas looked like chestnuts— kuri in Japanese, which is why Goombas are known in Japan as kuribo.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
11 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Clichés.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/clich%C3%A9s. Accessed 7 Mar. 2026.
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