US /bəˈnæl/ UK /bəˈnɑːl/
adj

Meanings

  1. 1
    adj

    so lacking in originality as to be boring

    The speech was full of banal clichés about teamwork.

Thesaurus

Synonyms
1 adj · so lacking in originality... tritehackneyedcommonplaceinsipidvapidhumdrum
Word family
Derived forms banalitybanally
Related forms ban

Etymology

From French banal ('commonplace'), originally 'compulsory, communal' (of a mill or oven open to all tenants of a feudal ban), from ban ('proclamation, feudal jurisdiction'), of Germanic origin.

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Topics

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