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Definition of commonplacenext
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commonplace

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noun

as in cliché
an idea or expression that has been used by many people the familiar summertime commonplace that "It's not the heat, it's the humidity"

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of commonplace
Adjective
While the Royal Household of Spain doesn't feature any rules on the topic, curtsies (for women) and slight neck bows (for men) have been a commonplace way for royals to greet those of higher rank. Janine Henni, PEOPLE, 3 June 2026 Changes to his position coach were commonplace for Jackson in his younger years. David Furones, Sun Sentinel, 3 June 2026
Noun
In the early 2000s, Sears began to use its website — the new iteration of its catalog — to help pioneer the now-commonplace practices of buying goods online and picking them up in store. Domenica Bongiovanni, USA Today, 15 Apr. 2026 By the time Szeemann was invited to organize two consecutive installments of the Venice Biennale (in 1999 and 2001), the criticism of curators’ assuming the role of meta-artists, in Szeemann’s case with quasi-shamanistic aspirations, had become a commonplace. Daniel Birnbaum, Artforum, 2 Apr. 2026 See All Example Sentences for commonplace
Recent Examples of Synonyms for commonplace
Adjective
  • Now that the garden is complete aside from normal plant replacements, Sterman recognizes it as the expression of her own evolution and growth as a garden designer as well as changing views on waterwise gardening.
    Nicole Sours Larson, San Diego Union-Tribune, 13 June 2026
  • The West Coast is also bracing for rising temperatures, with highs climbing to 10 to 25 degrees above normal this weekend.
    Christine Rapp, NBC news, 13 June 2026
Adjective
  • In the final weeks of the campaign, Pratt became ubiquitous in the national media.
    National Correspondent, Los Angeles Times, 11 June 2026
  • This type of signage became so ubiquitous and so grotesquely huge across the city as businesses advertised and competed for visual attention that they were forcefully phased out by the government in the 2010s and replaced by Korean letters tastefully cut out to be lit from within instead.
    Anton Hur, Condé Nast Traveler, 10 June 2026
Adjective
  • This is a directed, stereotyped behavior in which the highest-resolution region of the somatosensory surface is brought to bear on the object requiring the most detailed analysis.
    Scott Travers, Forbes.com, 20 May 2026
  • In some cases, praise took on overtly stereotyped forms: words like 'love' were used disproportionately with female students, while 'powerful' appeared only for Black students.
    Rachel del Guidice, FOXNews.com, 28 Apr. 2026
Noun
  • Spain’s success over the past five years has undermined many long-standing political-economic truisms.
    Rogé Karma, The Atlantic, 1 June 2026
  • His deep arsenal gives him a chance to handle a truism of the craft.
    Tyler Kepner, New York Times, 8 May 2026
Adjective
  • The company’s founders say the idea came from watching ordinary people struggle to access opportunities that increasingly depended on technical knowledge.
    Malana VanTyler, USA Today, 15 June 2026
  • Late Thursday, the plaintiffs filed a motion asking the court to order the Pentagon to resume its ordinary review process for new wind energy projects.
    Jennifer McDermott, Fortune, 15 June 2026
Adjective
  • Cynthia goes down the list of people Shamea is clashing with and, as usual, all roads lead to Porsha.
    Ile-Ife Okantah, Vulture, 15 June 2026
  • The scramble as the deadline approached was more intense than usual this year because of the state’s new congressional districts, which upended the careers of incumbents and opened opportunities for a slew of other hopefuls.
    Anthony Man, Sun Sentinel, 14 June 2026
Adjective
  • My wife lowers her gaze as if tired, rubbing the side of her glass with her fingers.
    Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 11 June 2026
  • The first step is to avoid the tired trap of pitting a liberal arts education against a technical or practical one.
    Jamie Merisotis, Forbes.com, 11 June 2026
Noun
  • In the last few decades, that swagger seems to have collapsed under the weight of a tepid banality.
    Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 8 Apr. 2026
  • One effect of this austerity and repression is to focus attention on Albee’s language, with its slippery banalities and barbs.
    Steven Winn, San Francisco Chronicle, 3 Apr. 2026

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Cite this Entry

“Commonplace.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/commonplace. Accessed 16 Jun. 2026.

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