groaners

noun

plural of groaner
as in clichés
an idea or expression that has been used by many people the play's dialogue featured all of the groaners that seem to be de rigueur for any dysfunctional-family drama

Synonyms & Similar Words

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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 groaners Those pacing blips aren’t the only groaners. — Greg Evans, Deadline, 15 Apr. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for groaners
  1. sayings
  2. truisms
  3. tropes
  4. platitudes
  5. bromides
  6. banalities
  7. chestnuts
Noun
  • Well, ‘It’s been emotional’ has become one of the British icon sayings of movie history, which is fantastic.
    — Jesse Whittock, Deadline, 3 Sep. 2026
  • As part of their annual Halloween decor drop, Anthropologie released Halloween bistro tile items that blend classic motifs and sayings with the Bistro Tile Collection’s Parisian style.
    — Claire Hoppe Norgaard, Better Homes & Gardens, 20 Aug. 2026
Definition of sayings
Noun
  • The Gilded Age is beyond simplistic writing truisms like making every scene matter or following a story line all the way to a resolution.
    — Kathryn VanArendonk, Vulture, 30 Oct. 2026
  • Spain’s success over the past five years has undermined many long-standing political-economic truisms.
    — Rogé Karma, The Atlantic, 1 June 2026
Definition of truisms
Noun
  • But romances, especially of the sort SJM has written in the past, usually develop through tropes, such as enemies-to-lovers or second-chance romance.
    — Kathryn VanArendonk, Vulture, 28 Oct. 2026
  • Belying his long history as a Chamber of Commerce Republican, Husted ran through familiar tropes of right-wing populism, blaming Democrats exclusively for fifty years of the valley’s job losses.
    — Dan Kaufman, New Yorker, 27 Oct. 2026
Definition of tropes
Noun
  • Are the general platitudes about Perry’s talent and why Friends was successful — courtesy of a single cultural critic — really necessary?
    — Daniel Fienberg, HollywoodReporter, 27 Oct. 2026
  • Hughes offered the usual interview platitudes and seemed to be pleased with how his team was playing.
    — Matt Reigle OutKick, FOXNews.com, 2 Oct. 2026
Definition of platitudes
Noun
  • The president used similar bromides in private calls to assuage allies, including Steve Bannon and Tucker Carlson, before launching the war in February, according to people familiar with the conversations.
    — Vivian Salama, The Atlantic, 3 June 2026
  • While these songs might appear to be somewhat straightforward EBM that wear their politics on their latex sleeve, there’s a level of ambiguity at work that moves Kissing Luck Goodbye past its own bromides and into deeper artistic territory.
    — Sadie Sartini Garner, Pitchfork, 16 Apr. 2026
Definition of bromides
Noun
  • Then morning would come, with all the banalities that drew them apart.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 18 Aug. 2026
  • And even though access to such banalities may sound brain-deadening, and at best dull, some of the most famous people in the world are now live-streamers.
    — Brady Brickner-Wood, New Yorker, 12 Aug. 2026
Definition of banalities
Noun
  • Candied chestnuts and violets, dark chocolates, and pralines are the specialties at Giovanni Galli, on Corso di Porta Romana.
    — Emma Bocchi, Vogue, 21 Sep. 2026
  • There are a few old chestnuts that are sort of irresistible, sort of inevitable.
    — Quanta Magazine, Quanta Magazine, 17 Sep. 2026
Definition of chestnuts

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groaner
groaners
groaning
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Cite this Entry

“Groaners.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/groaners. Accessed 3 Nov. 2026.

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