platitudes

noun

plural of platitude
as in clichés
an idea or expression that has been used by many people "blondes have more fun" is a silly platitude

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 platitudes 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 But the platitudes offered by Sakic for Bednar and Bednar for Sakic ignore the Avs’ 20-18 playoff record since winning the cup. — Troy Renck, Denver Post, 1 Oct. 2026 Because the story lines are facile fakes, because the characters are blanked out, the substance of relationships is reduced to dialogue of generalities and platitudes. — Richard Brody, New Yorker, 30 Sep. 2026 The quarterback usually speaks in emotionless platitudes during news conferences. — Joaquin Ruiz, Los Angeles Times, 26 Sep. 2026 By platitudes like a peaceful and dignified death and silly words like natural. — Literary Hub, 24 Sep. 2026 Running parallel to this butchery investigation is the arrival of perpetually hungover FBI agent Gwen Birgssen, played by British actress Lily James with an incomprehensible southern drawl and some clunky platitudes that veer into genre parody. — Siddhant Adlakha, Variety, 16 Sep. 2026 In between some of the manager’s more clip-worthy quotes, there were more of his usual — and not incorrect — platitudes. — Cody Stavenhagen, New York Times, 25 Aug. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for platitudes
  1. bromides
  2. banalities
  3. truisms
  4. sayings
  5. tropes
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
  • Two truisms confirmed This is not to say the 2026 preelection polls offered precision estimates before returns poured in.
    — W Joseph Campbell, The Conversation, 4 Nov. 2026
  • 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
Definition of truisms
Noun
  • One of my favorite sayings came from a wetsuit ad for Body Glove in SURFER magazine back in the mid 1960s that featured Mickey Munoz.
    — Corky Carroll, Oc Register, 7 Nov. 2026
  • 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
Definition of sayings
Noun
  • All of these shows share common tropes, despite disparate tones, topics, and objectives — not the least of which are their glorious feminist underpinnings.
    — Ben Travers, IndieWire, 12 Nov. 2026
  • West finds his deepest dive into the tropes of horror with this sequence, about as dark as any version of A Christmas Carol can get.
    — Pete Hammond, Deadline, 12 Nov. 2026
Definition of tropes

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platitude
platitudes
platitudinal
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Cite this Entry

“Platitudes.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/platitudes. Accessed 15 Nov. 2026.

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