boilerplate

noun

boil·​er·​plate ˈbȯi-lər-ˌplāt 

1

: syndicated material supplied especially to weekly newspapers in matrix or plate form

2

a

: standardized text

b

: formulaic or hackneyed language

bureaucratic boilerplate

3

: tightly packed icy snow

Did you know?

Boilerplate in Print

In the days before computers, small newspapers around the U.S. relied heavily on feature stories, editorials, and other printed material supplied by large publishing syndicates. The syndicates delivered that copy on metal plates with the type already in place so the local papers wouldn't have to set it. Printers apparently dubbed those syndicated plates "boiler plates" because of their resemblance to the plating used in making steam boilers. Soon boilerplate came to refer to the printed material on the plates as well as to the plates themselves. Because boilerplate stories were often more filler—material used to fill extra space in a column or page of a newspaper to increase its size—than important or informative news, the word acquired negative connotations and gained the "standardized or formulaic language" sense widely used today.

Examples of boilerplate in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Key among players’ worries was that the Amazon series would be a gritty, boilerplate crime drama bereft of the tonal dissonance fans have come to love from the game’s wacky, melodramatic soap opera. —Isaiah Colbert, Rolling Stone, 24 Oct. 2024

In Today's Software Development Today’s AI tools are great at automating repetitive tasks, such as writing boilerplate code and refactoring. —Julius Hietala, Forbes, 4 Oct. 2024

This is a boilerplate season with a few standout episodes. —Annabel Gutterman, TIME, 26 Sep. 2024

First, employers can move away from legalistic boilerplates and use more heartfelt language about their commitment to DEI. —Mason Ameri terri R. Kurtzberg, Harvard Business Review, 26 June 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1893, in the meaning defined at sense 1

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