hackneyed
pronunciation
How to pronounce hackneyed in British English:
UK [ˈhæknid]
How to pronounce hackneyed in American English:
US [ˈhæknid]
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- Adjective:
- repeated too often; overfamiliar through overuse
Word Origin
- hackneyed (adj.)
- "trite, so overused as to have become uninteresting," 1749, figurative use of past participle adjective from hackney (v.) "use a horse for riding" (1570s), hence "make common by indiscriminate use" (1590s), from hackney (n.), and compare hack (n.2) in its specialized sense of "one who writes anything for hire." From 1769 as "kept for hire."
Example
- 1. The papers didn 't disrespect persistent forms of life with the title I abhor , but , instead , rightly undermined the hackneyed concept .
- 2. There is probably no phrase much more hackneyed than that of ' 'human document , ' ' yet it is the only one which at all describes this very unusual book .
- 3. Here is what the book has to say on this hackneyed theme : " we strive to make our world comfortable for people of all stripes , thinking styles and hairdos even when they exceed our comfort level . "
- 4. In particular he criticizes political leaders for being sucked into using meaningless phrases and hackneyed mantras to disguise policies or protect themselves from accountability .