as in cliche
used or heard so often as to be dull
the shopworn suggestion to job applicants to "just be yourself"
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Recent Examples of shopworn
Carson said — 50 times Carson’s office, on a quiet street in downtown Modesto, was gritty and shopworn and functional in feel.
—
Los Angeles Times, 27 June 2021
If your listing has become shopworn, look at reducing the price or offering incentives.
—John Nugent, Houston Chronicle, 4 July 2020
So much of his work seems dull, shopworn, generic.
—James Marcus, The New Yorker, 1 June 2020
See All Example Sentences for shopworn
Los Angeles Times, 27 June 2021
If your listing has become shopworn, look at reducing the price or offering incentives.
—John Nugent, Houston Chronicle, 4 July 2020
So much of his work seems dull, shopworn, generic.
—James Marcus, The New Yorker, 1 June 2020
See All Example Sentences for shopworn
Recent Examples of Synonyms for shopworn
Adjective
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Several leaders described the pressure of being both highly visible and easily stereotyped.—
Benjamin Laker,
Forbes.com,
13 May 2025
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At the time, Latinos were often cast in stereotyped roles with heavy accents and largely denied the opportunity to direct features.—
Maximilíano Durón,
ARTnews.com,
17 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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Reed got her first gig at Cataloochee at the age of 19 in 1996 and has never tired of the work.—
Tara Massouleh McCay,
Southern Living,
14 Sep. 2025
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Manning’s inefficiency was on full display, and the Longhorns faithful grew tired of it during the first half.—
Ryan Gaydos,
FOXNews.com,
14 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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Trauma is not a hackneyed literary trope in the work of Miriam Toews.—
Lorrie Moore,
The New York Review of Books,
4 Sep. 2025
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Similarly, the billionaire-villain forgery subplot and the insertion of romance into team dynamics came across as forced, hackneyed and unnecessary.—
Karl Moore,
Forbes.com,
3 July 2025
Cite this Entry
“Shopworn.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/shopworn. Accessed 17 Sep. 2025.
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