as in mundanity
the quality or state of being ordinary
He was a cheerful person who took pleasure even in the ordinariness of everyday life.
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Recent Examples of ordinariness
Is there a positive case for being ordinary—a reason to actively pursue ordinariness, regardless of whether being great is overrated?
—
Joshua Rothman, New Yorker, 22 May 2026
The very ordinariness of the image in the picture that Constable had painted had been a block to his professional advancement.
—Literary Hub, 12 May 2026
Lane not only captures Willy’s ordinariness and his ubiquity, no small achievement for so famous an actor, but also his optimism, his foundational, near-Trumpian belief in a coming Very Big Deal for either him or his sons.
—Chris Jones, Chicago Tribune, 11 May 2026
Lane, though, not only captures Willy’s ordinariness and his ubiquity, which is no small achievement for so famous an actor, but also his optimism, his foundational, near-Trumpian belief in a coming Very Big Deal for either him or his sons.
—Chris Jones, New York Daily News, 10 Apr. 2026
Metcalf and Pullman are both wonderful in their shuffling ordinariness, reenacting long-obsolete parental dynamics with a kind of rueful, hopeful denial.
—Guy Lodge, Variety, 13 Feb. 2026
The ordinariness of their relationship made the moment feel even more special.
—Ashley Vega, PEOPLE, 19 Dec. 2025
Robert’s ordinariness doesn’t change.
—David Fear, Rolling Stone, 23 Nov. 2025
There is something about that ordinariness that is extraordinary.
—Jeff Conway, Forbes.com, 5 Aug. 2025
Joshua Rothman, New Yorker, 22 May 2026
The very ordinariness of the image in the picture that Constable had painted had been a block to his professional advancement.
—Literary Hub, 12 May 2026
Lane not only captures Willy’s ordinariness and his ubiquity, no small achievement for so famous an actor, but also his optimism, his foundational, near-Trumpian belief in a coming Very Big Deal for either him or his sons.
—Chris Jones, Chicago Tribune, 11 May 2026
Lane, though, not only captures Willy’s ordinariness and his ubiquity, which is no small achievement for so famous an actor, but also his optimism, his foundational, near-Trumpian belief in a coming Very Big Deal for either him or his sons.
—Chris Jones, New York Daily News, 10 Apr. 2026
Metcalf and Pullman are both wonderful in their shuffling ordinariness, reenacting long-obsolete parental dynamics with a kind of rueful, hopeful denial.
—Guy Lodge, Variety, 13 Feb. 2026
The ordinariness of their relationship made the moment feel even more special.
—Ashley Vega, PEOPLE, 19 Dec. 2025
Robert’s ordinariness doesn’t change.
—David Fear, Rolling Stone, 23 Nov. 2025
There is something about that ordinariness that is extraordinary.
—Jeff Conway, Forbes.com, 5 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for ordinariness
Noun
-
Belc is a thoroughly charming narrator of everything from finding meaning in the work of Deb Perelman and Ina Garten to parenting as a trans man to the maddening and joyful mundanity of running a household.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
2 June 2026
-
The subtlety and mundanity of life is funny enough.—
Marcus Jones,
IndieWire,
31 May 2026
Noun
-
Charles Wylie, the museum’s curator of photography, says the exhibit highlights the centrality of the Black experience in American history, from the tragedies to the mundaneness of family life.—
Kamal Morgan,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
13 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Ordinariness.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/ordinariness. Accessed 14 Jun. 2026.
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