1
as in boring
lacking in qualities that make for spirit and character
unlike their early work, the band's latest offering is banal and uninspiring
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in cliche
used or heard so often as to be dull
please find new ways of phrasing your thoughts instead of relying on banal expressions
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of banal
Yet these familiar coming-of-age scenes are charged with tragedy and suspense as the family awaits their fate, reminding us how the violence of displacement can deny its victims even the most banal of life’s pleasures.
—
Devika Girish, New York Times, 10 Jan. 2025
Often sports litigations begin with dramatic assertions and intriguing legal theories only to end in confidential settlements and banal PR statements.
—Michael McCann, Sportico.com, 15 Mar. 2025
And, in every case, banal commentary is slowly occluding the art, seeping into it in boldface titles or explainers that speak over the sound or cover the image.
—Namwali Serpell, The New Yorker, 8 Mar. 2025
On the other hand, is there anything more banal than not feeling like an individual in 2025?
—Constance Grady, Vox, 6 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for banal
Devika Girish, New York Times, 10 Jan. 2025
Often sports litigations begin with dramatic assertions and intriguing legal theories only to end in confidential settlements and banal PR statements.
—Michael McCann, Sportico.com, 15 Mar. 2025
And, in every case, banal commentary is slowly occluding the art, seeping into it in boldface titles or explainers that speak over the sound or cover the image.
—Namwali Serpell, The New Yorker, 8 Mar. 2025
On the other hand, is there anything more banal than not feeling like an individual in 2025?
—Constance Grady, Vox, 6 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for banal
Recent Examples of Synonyms for banal
Adjective
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Anything that isn’t someone bleeding out is boring to them, that kind of thing.—
Maria Fontoura,
Rolling Stone,
5 Apr. 2025
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But here, it’s all viewed through a workplace-comedy format, which captures the kind of boring ordinariness of typical medical care while also getting at some of the big frustrations of understaffing.—
Kathryn VanArendonk,
Vulture,
3 Apr. 2025
Adjective
-
Then there are interviews, scoops, and other kinds of highly specific reporting; a reporter might labor for months to unearth new information, only for A.I. to hoover it up and fold it into some bland summary.—
Joshua Rothman,
New Yorker,
8 Apr. 2025
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Gigantic and often bland, the squash filled our grocery carts and vexed our dull knives for too many years.—
Alex Beggs,
Bon Appetit Magazine,
8 Apr. 2025
Adjective
-
At the time, Latinos were often cast in stereotyped roles with heavy accents and largely denied the opportunity to direct features.—
Maximilíano Durón,
ARTnews.com,
17 Mar. 2025
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Tragedies can be examined by those outside of its sphere of destruction, but the groundswell of feeling from Mexican viewers and critics is that there was little or no care taken to understand the cultural grief beyond stereotyped spectacle.—
Lucy Ford,
TIME,
24 Jan. 2025
Adjective
-
Bored of an increasingly insipid Premier League season?—
Nick Miller,
New York Times,
7 Apr. 2025
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Performances range from bad to worse (Jude Law as Captain Hook is permanently running on fumes), Neverland is a dreary landscape of muted greens and browns, and the story becomes an insipid take on an adventurous classic.—
Barry Levitt,
TIME,
21 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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Here is a puzzle that should bring back memories for many solvers: settling down into a spacious middle seat, groping for seatbelts, suffering through the same tired safety notices.—
Sam Corbin,
New York Times,
1 Apr. 2025
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The gel coating around the pads provides a nonabrasive experience that helps lift up tired skin.—
Rosa Jisoo Pyo,
Vogue,
1 Apr. 2025
Adjective
-
Miracle leave-in product: on sale for $28 (30% off) Original price: $40 (Ulta) Dealing with dull or damaged hair?—
Christopher Murray,
FOXNews.com,
2 Apr. 2025
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No race including Bianco or Jenner should ever be dull, though, and this one likely won’t be either.—
Thomas Elias,
The Mercury News,
21 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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Direct trade models that are commonplace in the coffee industry are not so in the tea industry (albeit not unheard of), because of the way the majority of the latter operates through world market auctions and regional export/importers.—
Christopher Marquis,
Forbes.com,
8 Apr. 2025
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But for others, particularly younger Americans, this could be the season of life where receiving wedding invitations is commonplace, and the costs are adding up.—
Nerdwallet,
Oc Register,
4 Apr. 2025
Adjective
-
Of course, going from shows to pickleball classes to after-hours jam sessions at B.B. King’s Blues Club can be tiring.—
DeMarco Williams,
Forbes.com,
28 Mar. 2025
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Sanchez added a selfie from bed, sharing how tiring her pregnancy is.—
Charna Flam,
People.com,
7 Feb. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Banal.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/banal. Accessed 14 Apr. 2025.
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