cliched

cliched — adjective

1. describing a phrase, idea, or scene that has been repeated so many times in book

1.形容詞C1
釋義

describing a phrase, idea, or scene that has been repeated so many times in books, films, or speech that it has lost its freshness and feels predictable to the listener.

例句

Hassan thought the film's ending was cliched, with the hero rescuing the city in the final second.

predicative use after linking verb

The writing teacher warned Antonia to avoid cliched phrases like 'at the end of the day' in her essay.

attributive: cliched + noun (phrases, expressions, lines)

同義詞
  • hackneyed

    more formal, written register

  • trite

    stronger; emphasises shallow and stale

  • stale

    broader; can describe news or food too

  • unoriginal

    neutral and direct; less judgemental

反義詞
  • fresh

    everyday opposite for ideas or language

  • original

    emphasises new and not copied

用法筆記

Frequently used both attributively (cliched + noun: phrase, line, ending, joke, image) and predicatively after 'sound', 'feel', 'seem', 'become'. Often softened by 'a bit', 'rather', 'somewhat' because calling something outright cliched is a strong negative judgement.

常見錯誤

❌His joke was very cliche.
✅His joke was very cliched.
💡'cliche' is the noun; the adjective form ends in -d.
❌The book is cliched on romantic love.
✅The book is full of cliched ideas about romantic love.
💡cliched describes the phrase or idea itself, not the topic; it does not take a preposition.