stereotype 1 of 2

as in concept
an idea or statement about all of the members of a group or all the instances of a situation the noble savage was a stereotype that appealed to 18th-century intellectuals, who viewed European civilization as decadent and corrupt

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stereotype

2 of 2

verb

as in to overuse
to use so much as to make less appealing Movies have stereotyped the domineering mother-in-law ad nauseam.

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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 stereotype
Noun
Goodell’s longtime practicing of Pilates certainly counters that stereotype. Bruce Y. Lee, Forbes.com, 9 Sep. 2025 My Pafology, later retitled Fuck, a book that exploits nearly every Black stereotype. Lauren Morrow september 9, Literary Hub, 9 Sep. 2025
Verb
This is, of course, a tremendously unfair characterization of the lunch lady, who, given her profession of feeding hungry children, ought to be stereotyped as saintly rather than monstrous. Helen Rosner, New Yorker, 17 Aug. 2025 Women are often stereotyped as less decisive than men, but, in reality, studies show that women and men are equally capable of making decisions quickly. Kim Elsesser, Forbes.com, 8 Aug. 2025 See All Example Sentences for stereotype
Recent Examples of Synonyms for stereotype
Noun
  • Each module has a video component and addresses real-world concepts for AI use cases in automotive.
    Malana VanTyler, USA Today, 11 Sep. 2025
  • Zara relocated and expanded into an elevated design department store-style concept featuring a dedicated Zara Athletics section.
    Rhonda Richford, Footwear News, 10 Sep. 2025
Verb
  • Annabelle has been in so many movies now, to the point of being overused (the real doll has even been suspected of paranormal activity recently).
    Dani Di Placido, Forbes.com, 10 Sep. 2025
  • The redemption story is overused in sports, but Anisimova coming back from a double-bagel Wimbledon final defeat against Iga Świątek to beat the same player a couple of months later was extraordinary.
    The Athletic Tennis Staff, New York Times, 8 Sep. 2025
Noun
  • But these teachings challenge any notion of hoarding resources for oneself—or one’s precious group—at the expense of others in need.
    John Fugelsang September 12, Literary Hub, 12 Sep. 2025
  • But the notion that the president himself is the leader of Tren de Aragua is a bit of stretch, according to Ronna Rísquez, the author of the book El Tren de Aragua.
    Gisela Salim-Peyer, The Atlantic, 12 Sep. 2025
Verb
  • His versions were full-blooded, with lush strings and reasonably large orchestras — and, purists alleged — vulgarizing distortions.
    BostonGlobe.com, BostonGlobe.com, 28 Oct. 2019
  • Ever since his rise to power, Trump has served as a vulgarizing agent.
    Leon Neyfakh, Slate Magazine, 2 June 2017
Noun
  • This disastrously cramped conception of who gets to have a day in court would be the main target of my outrage if the court’s opinion on the use of ethnicity, language and workplace as factors in immigration enforcement weren’t even more upsetting.
    Noah Feldman, Mercury News, 10 Sep. 2025
  • Political theorist Antonio Gramsci (1891–1937), an Italian anti-fascist journalist, organizer, and imprisoned political dissident, offered a conception of society and described the possibilities for changing social orders.
    The Editors, JSTOR Daily, 10 Sep. 2025
Verb
  • Too often, developments of this size that pop up on virgin ground get lost to boring cookie-cutter street scaping and architecture.
    The Denver Post Editorial Board, Denver Post, 10 Sep. 2025
  • The approach is complemented by heavy use of the Estevez brothers’ childhood Super 8 movies, genre-bending DIY productions that Charlie notes often bore similarities to the movies their father was making at the time.
    Daniel Fienberg, HollywoodReporter, 10 Sep. 2025
Noun
  • The most effective education models are those that blend theory with real-world practice.
    Sanjay Srivastava, Forbes.com, 10 Sep. 2025
  • Testing particle physics theories, the $8 billion LHC was composed of superconducting magnets that allowed scientists to study subatomic particles including protons, electrons, quarks and photons.
    Lorenzino Estrada, AZCentral.com, 10 Sep. 2025
Verb
  • In the late 1980s while working as anchor for KLAS-TV in Las Vegas, Knapp rose to fame helping popularize the claims of UFO-lore stalwarts Bob Lazar and John Lear.
    Brett Tingley, Space.com, 8 Sep. 2025
  • The news highlights a movement to popularize a gesture to signal distress to passersby.
    Phaedra Trethan, USA Today, 4 Sep. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Stereotype.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/stereotype. Accessed 16 Sep. 2025.

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