If you say that something such as an idea, remark, or story is trite, you mean that it is dull and boring because it has been said or told too many times.
The movie is teeming with obvious and trite ideas.
The simple concepts he had been taught now sounded trite and naive.
Synonyms: unoriginal, worn, common, stock More Synonyms of trite
trite in British English
(traɪt)
adjective
1.
hackneyed; dull
a trite comment
2. archaic
frayed or worn out
Derived forms
tritely (ˈtritely)
adverb
triteness (ˈtriteness)
noun
Word origin
C16: from Latin trītus worn down, from terere to rub
trite in American English
(traɪt)
adjectiveWord forms: ˈtriter or ˈtritest
worn out by constant use; no longer having freshness, originality, or novelty; stale
a trite idea, remark, etc.
SYNONYMY NOTE: trite is applied to something, especially an expression or idea, which through repeateduse or application has lost its original freshness and impressive force (e.g., “likea bolt from the blue”); , hackneyed refers to such expressions which through constant use have become virtually meaningless(e.g., “last but not least”); , stereotyped applies to those fixed expressions which seem invariably to be called up in certainsituations (e.g., “I point with pride” in a political oration); , commonplace is used of any obvious or conventional remark or idea (e.g., “it isn't the heat,it's the humidity”)
OPPOSITES: original, fresh
Derived forms
tritely (ˈtritely)
adverb
triteness (ˈtriteness)
noun
Word origin
L tritus, pp. of terere, to rub, wear out < IE base *ter-, to rub, bore > throw, Gr tryein, to wear away
Examples of 'trite' in a sentence
trite
And admittedly at first the outline sounds trite.
Christianity Today (2000)
It is not a story with a trite happy ending.
Times, Sunday Times (2014)
It would be far too trite to say that rugby changed his life.
Times, Sunday Times (2009)
He came out with the same trite phrase.
Times, Sunday Times (2008)
More likely to divide are the whimsical nature of the story and the rather trite implied sentiment that music can unite.
The Times Literary Supplement (2012)
Is this just a trite observation?
Alexander Masters STUART: A Life Backwards (2005)
The worst thing was he left me for his secretary, which just sounds so trite.
Times, Sunday Times (2007)
That the champagne was on ice for Texas was both a trite phrase and a fact.
Times, Sunday Times (2011)
Sounds trite, but this makes a big difference.
Times, Sunday Times (2011)
It sounds trite, but there is a serenity about her.
Times, Sunday Times (2013)
The spokesman's trite assertion says it all.
Times, Sunday Times (2009)
It sounds a trite phrase, but it is not.
Times, Sunday Times (2007)
But it is not too trite to say that he wants to use his new rugby coaching skills to change the lives of others.
Times, Sunday Times (2009)
Why invent something so trite?
Times, Sunday Times (2012)
So it's difficult to get involved with the film's rather trite love story.
Times, Sunday Times (2007)
It brings meaning to the trite reality show phrase 'going on a journey '.
Times, Sunday Times (2012)
(adjective)
Definition
(of a remark or idea) commonplace and unoriginal
The movie is teeming with trite and obvious ideas.
Synonyms
unoriginal
worn
common
Earthquakes are fairly common in this part of the world.
stock
National security is the stock excuse for keeping things confidential.
ordinary
My life seems pretty ordinary compared to yours.
tired
I didn't want to hear one of his tired excuses.
routine
So many days are routine and uninteresting.
dull
They can both be rather dull.
stereotyped
Listeners seem to have stereotyped ideas.
hack
ill-paid lectureships and hack writing
pedestrian
His style is so pedestrian that the book is really boring.
commonplace
The practice was virtually unheard of twenty years ago, but has now become commonplace.
stale
repeating stale jokes to kill the time
banal
The text is banal.
corny (slang)
I know it sounds corny, but I'm not motivated by money.
run-of-the-mill
I was a run-of-the-mill kind of student.
threadbare
the government's threadbare domestic policies
clichéd
uninspired
The script was singularly uninspired.
hackneyed
That's the old hackneyed phrase, but it's true.
bromidic
Opposites
new
,
interesting
,
original
,
fresh
,
novel
,
exciting
,
unexpected
,
unfamiliar
,
uncommon
,
out-of-the-ordinary
Additional synonyms
in the sense of banal
Definition
lacking originality
The text is banal.
Synonyms
unoriginal,
stock,
ordinary,
boring,
tired,
routine,
dull,
everyday,
stereotypical,
pedestrian,
commonplace,
mundane,
tedious,
vanilla (slang),
dreary,
stale,
tiresome,
monotonous,
humdrum,
threadbare,
trite,
unimaginative,
uneventful,
uninteresting,
clichéd,
old hat,
mind-numbing,
hackneyed,
ho-hum (informal),
vapid,
repetitious,
wearisome,
platitudinous,
cliché-ridden,
unvaried
in the sense of common
Definition
frequently encountered
Earthquakes are fairly common in this part of the world.
Synonyms
usual,
standard,
daily,
regular,
ordinary,
familiar,
plain,
conventional,
routine,
frequent,
everyday,
customary,
commonplace,
vanilla (slang),
habitual,
run-of-the-mill,
humdrum,
stock,
workaday,
bog-standard (British, Irish, slang),
a dime a dozen
in the sense of commonplace
Definition
dull or unoriginal
The practice was virtually unheard of twenty years ago, but has now become commonplace.
Synonyms
everyday,
common,
ordinary,
widespread,
pedestrian,
customary,
mundane,
vanilla (slang),
banal,
run-of-the-mill,
humdrum,
dime-a-dozen (informal),
trite,
uninteresting
Nearby words of
trite
triple
triplet
tripper
trite
triturate
triumph
triumphant
Synonyms of 'trite'
trite
Explore 'trite' in the dictionary
Additional synonyms
in the sense of corny
Definition
unoriginal or oversentimental
I know it sounds corny, but I'm not motivated by money.
Synonyms
unoriginal,
banal,
trite,
hackneyed,
dull,
old-fashioned,
stereotyped,
commonplace,
feeble,
stale,
cheesy (informal),
old hat
in the sense of dull
Definition
not interesting
They can both be rather dull.
Synonyms
boring,
tedious,
dreary,
flat,
dry,
plain,
commonplace,
tiresome,
monotonous,
prosaic,
run-of-the-mill,
humdrum,
unimaginative,
dozy,
uninteresting,
mind-numbing,
ho-hum (informal),
vapid,
as dry as dust
in the sense of hack
Definition
unoriginal or of a low standard
ill-paid lectureships and hack writing
Synonyms
unoriginal,
pedestrian,
mediocre,
poor,
tired,
stereotyped,
banal,
undistinguished,
uninspired
in the sense of hackneyed
Definition
(of a word or phrase) unoriginal and overused
That's the old hackneyed phrase, but it's true.
Synonyms
clichéd,
stock,
tired,
common,
stereotyped,
pedestrian,
played out (informal),
commonplace,
worn-out,
stale,
overworked,
banal,
run-of-the-mill,
threadbare,
trite,
unoriginal,
timeworn
in the sense of ordinary
Definition
not special or different in any way
My life seems pretty ordinary compared to yours.
Synonyms
commonplace,
plain,
modest,
humble,
stereotyped,
pedestrian,
mundane,
vanilla (slang),
stale,
banal,
unremarkable,
prosaic,
run-of-the-mill,
humdrum,
homespun,
uninteresting,
workaday,
common or garden (informal),
unmemorable
in the sense of pedestrian
Definition
dull or commonplace
His style is so pedestrian that the book is really boring.
Synonyms
dull,
flat,
ordinary,
boring,
commonplace,
mundane,
mediocre,
plodding,
banal,
prosaic,
run-of-the-mill,
humdrum,
unimaginative,
uninteresting,
uninspired,
ho-hum (informal),
no great shakes (informal),
half-pie (New Zealand, informal)
in the sense of routine
So many days are routine and uninteresting.
Synonyms
boring,
dull,
predictable,
tedious,
tiresome,
run-of-the-mill,
humdrum,
unimaginative,
clichéd,
uninspired,
mind-numbing,
hackneyed,
unoriginal
in the sense of run-of-the-mill
Definition
ordinary or average
I was a run-of-the-mill kind of student.
Synonyms
ordinary,
middling,
average,
fair,
modest,
commonplace,
common,
vanilla (informal),
mediocre,
banal,
tolerable (informal),
passable,
undistinguished,
unimpressive,
unexciting,
unexceptional,
bog-standard (British, Irish, slang),
no great shakes (informal),
dime-a-dozen (informal)
in the sense of stale
Definition
uninteresting from having been done or seen too many times
repeating stale jokes to kill the time
Synonyms
unoriginal,
banal,
trite,
common,
flat,
stereotyped,
commonplace,
worn-out,
antiquated,
threadbare,
old hat,
insipid,
hackneyed,
overused,
repetitious,
platitudinous,
cliché-ridden
in the sense of stereotyped
Listeners seem to have stereotyped ideas.
Synonyms
unoriginal,
stock,
standard,
tired,
conventional,
played out,
stale,
banal,
standardized,
mass-produced,
corny (slang),
threadbare,
trite,
hackneyed,
overused,
platitudinous,
cliché-ridden
Additional synonyms
in the sense of stock
Definition
being a cliché
National security is the stock excuse for keeping things confidential.
Synonyms
hackneyed,
standard,
usual,
set,
routine,
stereotyped,
staple,
commonplace,
worn-out,
banal,
run-of-the-mill,
trite,
overused
in the sense of threadbare
Definition
having been used or expressed so often as to be no longer interesting
the government's threadbare domestic policies
Synonyms
hackneyed,
common,
tired,
stale,
corny (slang),
stock,
familiar,
conventional,
stereotyped,
commonplace,
well-worn,
trite,
clichéd,
overused,
cliché-ridden
in the sense of tired
Definition
having been used so often as to be no longer interesting