1
as in sermon
a public speech usually by a member of the clergy for the purpose of giving moral guidance or uplift
last Sunday's homily was about being kind to your neighbors
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2
as in cliche
an idea or expression that has been used by many people
a TV movie filled with the usual hokey homilies about people triumphing over life's adversities
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Recent Examples of homily
His discipline quickly reasserted itself, and with it his store of homilies.
—
Peter Goldman, Newsweek, 29 Dec. 2024
When lodging is granted, festivities ensue with prayers, scripture readings and a brief homily about Jesus’ birth.
—Kamren Curiel, Los Angeles Times, 4 Dec. 2024
Of course there is, although thankfully there’s not too much heavy-handedness to the script’s inherent homilies about fake news and American authoritarianism not just being a byproduct of the 1930s.
—Chris Willman, Variety, 16 June 2024
Last week, the pontiff skipped his homily during Palm Sunday Mass.
—Joseph Wilkinson, New York Daily News, 31 Mar. 2024
See All Example Sentences for homily
Peter Goldman, Newsweek, 29 Dec. 2024
When lodging is granted, festivities ensue with prayers, scripture readings and a brief homily about Jesus’ birth.
—Kamren Curiel, Los Angeles Times, 4 Dec. 2024
Of course there is, although thankfully there’s not too much heavy-handedness to the script’s inherent homilies about fake news and American authoritarianism not just being a byproduct of the 1930s.
—Chris Willman, Variety, 16 June 2024
Last week, the pontiff skipped his homily during Palm Sunday Mass.
—Joseph Wilkinson, New York Daily News, 31 Mar. 2024
See All Example Sentences for homily
Recent Examples of Synonyms for homily
Noun
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Catholics are opting for the Latin Mass, and public intellectual Jordan Peterson’s lectures now sound more like sermons than TED talks.—
Mike Woodruff,
Chicago Tribune,
28 Mar. 2025
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This Shabbat, Rosen gave a short sermon on the importance of breathing freely, both for oneself and for others.—
Yonat Shimron,
NPR,
9 Mar. 2025
Noun
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However, the billionaire’s use of spending cliches to justify the approach was tough to argue with.—
Zak Garner-Purkis,
Forbes,
23 Mar. 2025
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Normally, that’s one of the most overused cliches in sports.—
Jeremy Rutherford,
The Athletic,
17 Mar. 2025
Noun
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The film follows an ensemble of campers who are weary of platitudes about grief, and speak to one another from a place of radical honesty that is by turns heartbreaking and darkly hilarious, embracing irreverent humor as a cathartic means of self-expression.—
Addie Morfoot,
Variety,
19 Mar. 2025
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The members simply rounded up the usual suspects of platitudes.—
Vincent Turley,
Hartford Courant,
2 Mar. 2025
Noun
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The two-dimensional characters communicate in bromides; Lena’s fellow privates, who suffer from the laziest defining characteristics (coarse Southern gal, proper preacher’s daughter, New Yorker), are the worst offenders.—
Vikram Murthi,
IndieWire,
6 Dec. 2024
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In place of triumph-of-the-human-spirit bromides, though, what the book delivers is its own kind of cinema, harsh and true.—
New York Times,
New York Times,
8 July 2024
Noun
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Yesterday’s pangrams were attainability, banality and inability.—
Benjamin Mueller,
New York Times,
25 Feb. 2025
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The images are captivating in their intimacy and in their banality.—
April White,
JSTOR Daily,
17 Feb. 2025
Noun
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Prioritize Continuous Education To Build Inclusive Leadership Skills The saying goes that knowledge is power; as such, inclusive leaders already know that one of the tenets of success is continuous education.—
Simone E. Morris,
Forbes,
15 Mar. 2025
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But as the saying in Hindi goes, you’re not allowed to be offended on Holi. Covered in yellow, a woman celebrates on the outskirts of Amritsar.—
Mithil Aggarwal,
NBC News,
14 Mar. 2025
Noun
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The truism has it that most great New York magazine editors come from away—from the West or the Midwest or across the Atlantic—and arrive with an ability to see what natives don’t.—
Nathan Heller,
The New Yorker,
15 Mar. 2025
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The episode, though, underscored the truism that the papacy is a matter of general public knowledge, interest and debate here, and that speculating about the pope’s current health and who might be next is a national pastime.—
Nicole Winfield,
Los Angeles Times,
20 Feb. 2025
Noun
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Whitaker nicknamed the place Sparrow Hall, a reference to a medieval saint’s proverb about a sparrow who flies over a royal banquet, feeling only a brief moment of warmth.—
Adriane Quinlan,
Curbed,
17 Mar. 2025
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The German proverb, roughly translated into English, means: Steady dripping caves the stone.—
Gabby Herzig,
The Athletic,
2 Jan. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Homily.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/homily. Accessed 3 Apr. 2025.
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