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cliché

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary
See also: Cliché, cliche, clichê, and cliche'

English

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English Wikipedia has an article on:
Wikipedia

Alternative forms

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Etymology

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Unadapted borrowing from French cliché.

Pronunciation

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Noun

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cliché (plural clichés)

  1. (rhetoric) Something, most often a phrase or expression, that is overused or used outside its original context, so that its original impact and meaning are lost. A trite saying; a platitude. [from 19th c.]
    Synonyms: convention, platitude, stereotype, trope; see also Thesaurus:saying
    The villain kidnapping the love interest is a bit of a cliché.
    I know it's a bit of a cliché, but love really does conquer all.
    • 2003, “The Package”, performed by A Perfect Circle:
      Clever got me this far
      Then tricky got me in
      Eye on what I'm after
      I don't need another friend
      Smile and drop the cliche
      Till you think I'm listening
      Take just what I came for
      Then I'm out the door again
    • 2023, “Remember All The Girls”, performed by The Sherlocks:
      Don’t believe what they’re saying everything’s is gonna change How could it be ever the same? It’s just a cliché fading Till we go our separate ways
  2. (printing) A stereotype (printing plate).

Usage notes

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  • The alternative spelling cliche may be used without confusion, as there is no other word in English with this spelling. (Contrast résumé, resumé.)

Derived terms

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Translations

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Adjective

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cliché (comparative more cliché, superlative most cliché)

  1. (sometimes proscribed) Clichéd; having the characteristics of a cliché.

Verb

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cliché (third-person singular simple present clichés, present participle clichéing, simple past and past participle clichéd or (rare) clichéed)

  1. (ambitransitive) To use a cliché; to make up a word or a name that sounds like a cliché.
    • 2015, Shonda Rhimes, Year of Yes: How to Dance It Out, Stand In the Sun and Be Your Own Person‎[1]:
      He clichéd at me. He clichéd at me in a perky, condescending tone.

Anagrams

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Dutch

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Etymology

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Borrowed from French cliché.

Pronunciation

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  • IPA(key): /kliˈʃeː/
  • Audio:(file)
  • Hyphenation: cli‧ché
  • Rhymes: -eː

Noun

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cliché n (plural clichés, diminutive clicheetje n)

  1. a cliché
  2. an unoriginal work
  3. a printing plate, a stereotype

Derived terms

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Descendants

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  • Afrikaans: cliché
  • → Indonesian: klise

French

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Etymology

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Past participle of clicher (“to stereotype, (originally) to copy”, literally “to click, clink”), from Middle French clicher, from Old French cliquer (“to click, clack, sound, resound”), of Germanic origin, related to Dutch klikken (“to click, rattle”), Low German klikken (“to click”), German klicken (“to click”), Danish klikke (“to click”), Swedish klicka (“to click”). Probably onomatopoeic, and probably influenced by Middle High German klitsch (“soft, pulpy mass”), from the old technique of creating a printing plate. More at click.

Pronunciation

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Noun

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cliché m (plural clichés)

  1. (printing) stereotype (printing plate)
    La reproduction dans la presse de dessins et de photographies se fait au moyen de clichés typographiques.
    The reproduction in the press of drawings and photographs is done by means of typographical clichés.
  2. (photography) negative
  3. (by extension) snapshot
    prendre un cliché ― take a snapshot
  4. (figurative) cliché; stereotype (overused phrase or expression)
    Synonyms: banalité, idée reçue, lieu commun, stéréotype

Descendants

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Further reading

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Italian

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Alternative forms

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Etymology

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Unadapted borrowing from French cliché.

Pronunciation

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Noun

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cliché m (invariable)

  1. plate (printing)
  2. cliché

References

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  1. ^ cliché in Luciano Canepari, Dizionario di Pronuncia Italiana (DiPI)

Anagrams

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Polish

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Polish Wikipedia has an article on:
Wikipedia pl

Etymology

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    Unadapted borrowing from French cliché. Doublet of klisza.

    Pronunciation

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    • IPA(key): /kliˈʂɛ/
    • Audio:(file)
    • Rhymes: -ɛ
    • Syllabification: cli‧ché

    Noun

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    cliché n (indeclinable)

    1. (literary, rhetoric) cliché (overused phrase or expression)
      Synonyms: klisza, szablon

    Further reading

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    • “cliché”, in Polish dictionaries at PWN‎[2] (in Polish)

    Portuguese

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    Etymology

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      Unadapted borrowing from French cliché.

      Pronunciation

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      Noun

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      cliché m (plural clichés)

      1. unadapted form of clichê

      Further reading

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      Spanish

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      Spanish Wikipedia has an article on:
      Wikipedia es

      Alternative forms

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      Etymology

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        Borrowed from French cliché.

        Pronunciation

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        • IPA(key): /kliˈt͡ʃe/ [kliˈt͡ʃe]
        • IPA(key): /kliˈse/ [kliˈse]
        • IPA(key): /kliˈʃe/ [kliˈʃe] (rare)
        • Rhymes: -e
        • Syllabification: cli‧ché

        Noun

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        cliché m (plural clichés)

        1. (rhetoric) cliché
          Synonym: tópico
        2. (printing) cliché

        Usage notes

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        According to Royal Spanish Academy (RAE) prescriptions, unadapted foreign words should be written in italics in a text printed in roman type, and vice versa, and in quotation marks in a manuscript text or when italics are not available. In practice, this RAE prescription is not always followed.

        Further reading

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        Anagrams

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