1
as in boring
lacking in qualities that make for spirit and character
unlike their early work, the band's latest offering is banal and uninspiring
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in cliche
used or heard so often as to be dull
please find new ways of phrasing your thoughts instead of relying on banal expressions
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of banal
The main topic of conversation was how the duo turned a photo album featuring the banal daily activities of workers at Auschwitz-Birkenau into a searing play.
—
Jessica Gelt, Los Angeles Times, 21 Mar. 2025
This is true in a banal financial way: compared with its average price during the Biden Administration, Palantir’s stock has appreciated nearly six hundred per cent.
—Gideon Lewis-Kraus, The New Yorker, 19 Feb. 2025
That’s the kind of thing that happened in a banal, regular place.
—The Editors Of Ad, Architectural Digest, 7 Feb. 2025
As the handful of creature types repeat, the battles become banal.
—Harold Goldberg, New York Times, 8 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for banal
Jessica Gelt, Los Angeles Times, 21 Mar. 2025
This is true in a banal financial way: compared with its average price during the Biden Administration, Palantir’s stock has appreciated nearly six hundred per cent.
—Gideon Lewis-Kraus, The New Yorker, 19 Feb. 2025
That’s the kind of thing that happened in a banal, regular place.
—The Editors Of Ad, Architectural Digest, 7 Feb. 2025
As the handful of creature types repeat, the battles become banal.
—Harold Goldberg, New York Times, 8 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for banal
Recent Examples of Synonyms for banal
Adjective
-
No more boring, irrelevant training modules—this is learning at the speed of work.—
Lisa Bodell,
Forbes.com,
29 Apr. 2025
-
Some of this may happen under cover of darkness, but much of it happens in the open, under cover of arcane technocracy or boring bureaucracy.—
Andrew Marantz,
New Yorker,
28 Apr. 2025
Adjective
-
Water that’s too hot will scorch them and make for a bitter brew; water that’s too cold will under-extract the leaves and yield a bland cup.—
Oset Babür-Winter,
Bon Appetit Magazine,
1 May 2025
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In microgravity, foods tend to taste bland because of fluid shifts in our body and smells no longer wafting up into our nose.—
Robert Z. Pearlman,
Space.com,
1 May 2025
Adjective
-
Their negative stereotyped reputation seems to follow them like ageism follows older employees or sexism follows female employees.—
Bryan Robinson,
Forbes.com,
19 Apr. 2025
-
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
-
But the insipid Premier League displays that have pushed the club to the lower reaches of the table mean there is a scarcity of belief that such an outcome will come to pass.—
Zak Garner-Purkis,
Forbes.com,
23 Apr. 2025
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Bored of an increasingly insipid Premier League season?—
Nick Miller,
New York Times,
7 Apr. 2025
Adjective
-
At this point in the Trump show, the famously unpredictable president seems to be following a script as tired as any other long-running, low-brow procedural.—
Scott Roxborough,
HollywoodReporter,
5 May 2025
-
He’s grown tired of being optioned back and forth from the minor leagues.—
Tim Britton,
New York Times,
3 May 2025
Adjective
-
The light turned from orange to dull gray, and then Joe nudged my aching ribs — the tiger was standing in a glade 60 yards downhill.—
Cyril E. Holland,
Outdoor Life,
8 May 2025
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The actors’ shared genetics help Kurt convincingly play the older Wyatt, and their natural charisma helps make even the dullest scenes eminently watchable.—
EW.com,
EW.com,
8 May 2025
Adjective
-
VanDerveer doesn’t expect Stanford to be in the running for prospects demanding high seven-figure salaries, which has become commonplace in the SEC and Big Ten.—
Stewart Mandel,
New York Times,
1 May 2025
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By early evening, with the sun sinking and power still out for most of Spain and Portugal, camaraderie became commonplace.—
Rob Picheta,
CNN Money,
29 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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The Mets were three outs away from a sixth shutout in 23 games before Philadelphia scored four in the ninth off a tiring Max Kranick and Edwin Díaz.—
Tim Britton,
New York Times,
22 Apr. 2025
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Naturally, Raducanu’s level took a dip and the 2024 U.S Open runner-up seized the chance to let rip against a tiring opponent.—
Tim Ellis,
Forbes.com,
27 Mar. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Banal.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/banal. Accessed 13 May. 2025.
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