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Definition of commonplacenext
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commonplace

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noun

as in cliché
an idea or expression that has been used by many people the familiar summertime commonplace that "It's not the heat, it's the humidity"

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 commonplace
Adjective
By 2017, the practice became so commonplace that the NCAA switched up the calendar, adding an early December signing day to the traditional February window. Dana O’Neil, CNN Money, 9 Jan. 2026 Yet Amazon’s performance review models standards around employee discipline that have become commonplace throughout the tech industry in recent years. Jake Angelo, Fortune, 8 Jan. 2026
Noun
Ion gauges are relatively cheap (under US $1,000) and commonplace. IEEE Spectrum, 24 Sep. 2025 Talking about struggles, both past and present, can make the conversation commonplace and combat some of the fear that may fester in an indecisive personality. Janine Schindler, Forbes.com, 9 Sep. 2025 See All Example Sentences for commonplace
Recent Examples of Synonyms for commonplace
Adjective
  • This single fine is close to the normal total of $8 million to $10 million in all fines that the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration hands out each year.
    Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 7 Jan. 2026
  • Trump, as is his want, is just doing the normal thing without the usual white niceties that come with imperialist machinations.
    Elie Mystal, Washington Post, 7 Jan. 2026
Adjective
  • The Australia native is set to become an even more ubiquitous celebrity crush with the release of Wuthering Heights on Valentine’s Day 2026.
    Bailey Bujnosek, InStyle, 10 Jan. 2026
  • Online courses are ubiquitous now in the remote era and, for the right candidate, can be the ideal way to supplement your income without having to sacrifice your full-time work schedule.
    Matt Richardson, CBS News, 9 Jan. 2026
Adjective
  • Later, Lenape artist Joe Baker places cutout photographs of his ancestors over the stereotyped images of Native Americans found in the wallpaper.
    Tom McDonough, Artforum, 1 Nov. 2025
  • Several leaders described the pressure of being both highly visible and easily stereotyped.
    Benjamin Laker, Forbes.com, 13 May 2025
Adjective
  • Filming the stairs and seeing the response affirmed that her experience was, in fact, out of the ordinary.
    Ashley Vega, PEOPLE, 8 Jan. 2026
  • That means ordinary users cannot easily guess when Gen AI is reliable.
    Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 8 Jan. 2026
Adjective
  • As usual, Coon thrives in ambiguity, layering a seemingly straightforward woman with depth.
    Shania Russell, Entertainment Weekly, 9 Jan. 2026
  • As a result, Musick elected to bench her usual rotation for much of the second half.
    Ethan Westerman, Arkansas Online, 8 Jan. 2026
Adjective
  • Benin is the birthplace of voodoo, a religion far more complex than the tired tropes of straw dolls and pins.
    Caitlin Gunther, Travel + Leisure, 12 Jan. 2026
  • The show premiered over Thanksgiving weekend, when people were tired and full and bored (and probably also horny), and countered our world’s unceasing badness with its world’s buoyant sweetness.
    Fran Hoepfner, Vulture, 12 Jan. 2026
Noun
  • Warfare Alex Garland and Ray Mendoza’s Warfare is an admirable attempt to counter the truism that there’s no such thing as an anti-war movie — that all war movies, however gruesome or wrenching, effectively (and often unwittingly) wind up glamorizing combat to some degree.
    Alison Willmore, Vulture, 1 Dec. 2025
  • Kemp does warn his readers to be skeptical of truisms about the nature of history and the odds of apocalypse.
    Linda Kinstler, The Atlantic, 1 Dec. 2025
Adjective
  • The company intends to move away from the low-volume manufacturing typical of the aviation industry.
    Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 10 Jan. 2026
  • The project could also bypass typical rezoning requirements, allowing building to occur in agricultural and natural areas.
    Ryan Ballogg, Miami Herald, 9 Jan. 2026

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Cite this Entry

“Commonplace.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/commonplace. Accessed 16 Jan. 2026.

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