Definition:
A trite expression, often a figure of speech whose effectiveness has been worn out through overuse and excessive familiarity. See also:
- Dead Metaphor
- Catchphrase
- Cliche Sites for Writers
- 200 Words That Tick You Off
- Myles na Gopaleen Catechism of Cliché
- In Praise of Clichés, by Wright Morris
Etymology:
From the French, "a stereotype plate"Examples and Observations:
- "That's the way with these directors: they're always biting the hand that lays the golden egg."
(Samuel Goldwyn) - Live and learn.
- Stay the course.
- What goes around comes around.
- "Our writers are full of clichés just as old barns are full of bats. There is obviously no rule about this, except that anything you suspect of being a cliché undoubtedly is one and had better be removed."
(Wolcott Gibbs) - "Shortly after returning from his tour of the Near East, Anthony Eden submitted a long-winded report to the Prime Minister on his experiences and impressions. [Winston] Churchill, it is told, returned it to his War Minister with a note, 'As far as I can see you have used every cliché except "God is love" and "Please adjust your dress before leaving."'"
(Life, Dec. 1940. Churchill denied that the story was true.) - "I sailed through a logjam of dead literary clichés: snow-capped peaks above, fathomless depths below; and, in the middle of the picture, the usual gaunt cliffs, hoary crags, wild woods and crystal cascades."
(Jonathan Raban, Passage to Juneau) - "It is a cliché that most clichés are true, but then like most clichés, that cliché is untrue."
(Stephen Fry, Moab Is My Washpot, 1997) - "Some clichés were quite apt when first used but have become hackneyed over the years. One can hardly avoid using the occasional cliché, but clichés that are inefficient in conveying their meaning or are inappropriate to the occasion should be avoided."
(Martin Manswer, Bloomsbury Good Word Guide, 1988)
Pronunciation: klee-SHAY
