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What is the Difference Between cliché and stereotype?
The words cliché and stereotype have a good deal in common. Both come from French, both were originally printers’ terms, and both have come to take on somewhat negative meanings in modern use.
Their original meanings are essentially synonymous, referring to printing blocks from which numerous prints could be made. In fact, cliché means stereotype in French. Their modern meanings, however, are quite distinct. Cliché is today overwhelmingly encountered in reference to something hackneyed, such as an overly familiar or commonplace phrase, theme, or expression. Stereotype is most frequently now employed to refer to an often unfair and untrue belief that many people have about all people or things with a particular characteristic.
Examples of cliché in a Sentence
William F. Buckley, Jr., National Review, 1 May 2000
FILM "I Like It Like That": It has every cliché of the 'hood genre, elevated by a strong woman protagonist and a few comic moments. —Bell Hooks, Ms., September/October 1994
I'd never been out with a model before, so I hadn't even bargained on the cliché of the rock star and the model as being part of my life. —David Bowie, quoted in Rolling Stone, 10 June 1993
Time has been the best healer for the pain of loss, just as the old cliché says, but letting go is still difficult. —Lynn McAndrews, My Father Forgets, 1990
… don't seek the ultimate, general solution; find a corner that can be defined precisely and, as our new cliché proclaims, go for it. —Stephen Jay Gould, Natural History, July 1987
a speech filled with clichés about “finding your way” and “keeping the faith” The macho cop of Hollywood movies has become a cliché.
Gabriel Burns, AJC.com, 15 Apr. 2026 Across the album, Blake uses hyper-specific details like this to make the project feel personal without being obvious or cliche. —Donald Morrison, Pitchfork, 14 Apr. 2026 Matching furniture sets and too-small rugs are living room cliches to avoid. —Sarah Lyon, The Spruce, 13 Apr. 2026 The oldest, most enduring cliche about government policy is the one about how budgets are political, not fiscal, documents. —Business Columnist, Los Angeles Times, 7 Apr. 2026 Nautical influence runs through the merchandise without tipping into cliche. —Staff Report, Hartford Courant, 17 Mar. 2026 The dialogue is overladen with snicker-worthy cliches, a swelling, melodramatic soundtrack that doesn’t match the mood, dubious cameos and plastic, perfunctory life-affirming quotes. —Randy Myers, Mercury News, 11 Mar. 2026 Playing to the occasion Time for some of the cliches. —Thom Harris, New York Times, 7 Mar. 2026 Lines can be set for how many political cliches Trump uses, the number of interruptions from the audience, the total times a person is shown on camera, etc. —James Powel, USA Today, 24 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Cliché.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.grautoblog.com/dictionary/clich%C3%A9. Accessed 3 May. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
cliché
noun
French, literally, "metal printing plate"
