From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishclichécli‧ché /ˈkliːʃeɪ $ kliːˈʃeɪ/ ●○○ noun [countable] SLan idea or phrase that has been used so much that it is not effective or does not have any meaning any longer There is plenty of truth in the cliché that a trouble shared is a trouble halved.► see thesaurus at phrase, word —clichéd adjectiveCOLLOCATIONSadjectivesan old clichéHe seemed to believe that old cliché about a woman’s place being in the home.a tired cliché (=boring because it has been used so often)The story is based on a series of tired clichés.a worn-out cliché (=very boring)His writing is full of worn-out clichés.a popular cliché (=one used by a lot of people)The term 'information revolution' is a popular cliché.a romantic cliché (=something romantic that is rather boring because many people do it)Giving a girl red roses is a bit of a romantic cliché.verbsuse a cliché'Time marches on', to use the old cliché.be full of clichésSports reporting tends to be full of clichés.avoid cliché/clichésTry and avoid clichés.become a clichéIt has become a cliché to say that Prague is the most beautiful city in Europe.
Examples from the Corpus
cliché• At the risk of repeating an old cliché, what doesn't kill you makes you stronger.• The pretence that his, Surkov's, opening had been merely a dream was a pathetic cliché.• It's a cliché, I know, but the game isn't over till the final whistle blows.• It's become a cliché to say that presidential candidates are being marketed like bars of soap or boxes of cereal.• The cliché that "truth is stranger than fiction" certainly applies here.• Gedge pointed out the inherent stupidity of the famous theatrical cliché.• I shall vote Tory because they have a better class of cliché.• It's like looking back and reflecting, with a certain wisdom that maybe the cliché of rock'n'roll doesn't address.• Mr Davenport now worries that re-engineering is passing from a fad to a cliché.• Such works bear out the cliché that western high art challenges preconceptions, is experimental, disorientating and incomprehensible to the uninitiated.Origin cliché (1800-1900) French past participle of clicher “to print from a metal plate” 