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trite definition

trite (trīt)

adjective triter trit′er, tritest trit′·est

worn out by constant use; no longer having freshness, originality, or novelty; stale a trite idea, remark, etc.

Etymology: L tritus, pp. of terere, to rub, wear out < IE base *ter-, to rub, bore > throw, Gr tryein, to wear away

Related Forms:

Webster's New World College Dictionary Copyright © 2005 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

trite Synonyms

trite

modif.

hackneyed, prosaic, stereotyped; see common 1, dull 4.

trite is applied to something, especially an expression or idea, which through repeated use or application has lost its original freshness and impressive force (e.g., ``like a 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 certain situations (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"")


Webster's New World Roget's A-Z Thesaurus Copyright © 1999 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

trite Usage Examples

Adjective complement with noun phrase

  • sound: That sounds a bit trite, but there was something shining out.

Modifying Another Word

  • somewhat: But this is a somewhat trite answer, no matter how attractive is sometimes seems to me.

Infinitive complement

  • say: It is trite to say that the law is neither fixed nor static.

Modifies a noun

  • phrase: After applying some simple algebra to some trite phrases and cliches a new understanding can be reached of the secret to wealth and success.

Used with adjective complement

  • seem: Without the Spirit to help them, any attempted description of Christ would have seemed pretty trite.
trite usage examples (more)

The word usage examples above have been gathered from various sources to reflect current and historical usage. They do not represent the opinions of YourDictionary.com.

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"trite." Webster's New World College Dictionary. 2009

  • Your Dictionary. 4 July 2009
  • <www.yourdictionary.com/trite>

APA Style

trite. (2009). In Webster's New World College Dictionary

  • Retrieved July 4th, 2009, from www.yourdictionary.com/trite

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