An idea, phrase, or expression that has been used so often it has lost its original meaning or impact; a tired or overused phrase.
From French 'cliché,' originally a printing term for a stereotype block that produced identical copies. The metaphor extended to mean any overused or unoriginal idea that produces the same tired result repeatedly.
The word 'cliché' literally comes from the printing industry—a 'cliché' block was a metal plate that printed the exact same image thousands of times, so writers adopted it to describe ideas that had been printed into our brains through repetition.
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