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Table of Contents
Introduction
Do you want to know what cliches are and how to avoid them? Cliches are phrases that have been used so often that they lose their impact on your audience. Writers, poets, and songwriters need to be aware of them, because they can drain emotional energy from your work. Keep reading How to Avoid Writing Annoying Cliches to learn what they are and how to stay away from them.
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How to Avoid Writing Cliches #1: What Is a Cliche?
Merriam-Webster defines cliche (or cliché) as:
1: A trite phrase or expression (also: the idea expressed by it).
2: A hackneyed theme, characterization, or situation.
3: Something (such as a menu item) that has become overly familiar or commonplace. (Merriam-Webster Dictionary Online)
In other words, the word cliche means that you are using boring word choices:
- They’ve lost their excitement because they’ve been used by so many writers over the years.
- Plus, they’re easy to write, because they’re always on the tip of your pen.
- However, if you want to avoid cliches, you need to work harder to find original ideas.
How to Avoid Writing Cliches #2: Be Aware of Overused Phrases
One of the best ways to become aware of cliches is to know the most common ones. Here’s a list of fifty venerable cliches:
- A dark and stormy night
- A fine kettle of fish
- Actions speak louder than words
- All in a day’s work
- Barking up the wrong tree
- Beat a dead horse
- Bite the bullet
- Blast from the past
- Blessing in disguise
- Burning the midnight oil
- Call the shots
- Calm before the storm
- Can of worms
- Diamond in the rough
- Easier said than done
- Easy as pie
- Every cloud has a silver lining
- Everybody’s a comic
- Hit the nail on the head
- Ignorance is bliss
- It is what it is
- Kill two birds with one stone
- Let the cat out of the bag
- Loose canon
- More than life itself
- Nick of time
- On thin ice
- Once in a blue moon
- Opposites attract
- Outside the box
- Perfect storm
- Piece of cake
- Raining cats and dogs
- Read between the lines
- Rock and a hard place
- Room to swing a dead cat
- Scared to death
- Take it easy
- The ball is now in your court
- The wrong side of the bed
- Time flies
- Time heals all wounds
- Time will tell
- Turn it up to eleven
- Two to tango
- Water under the bridge
- What goes around, comes around
- When pigs fly
- You’re a laugh a minute
- Your cake and eat it too
Keep reading to find out how to write original ideas instead of cliches.
How to Avoid Writing Cliches #3: How to Avoid Writing Them
How do you steer clear of cliche writing?
- Avoid writing the first thing that you think of, because it will usually be, if not an outright cliche, at least unoriginal.
- Alternatively, you can edit out cliches after your first draft.
- First, you identify hackneyed phrases (like in the list above). Then, you need to reach down inside yourself to find fresh language by saying the same things in different ways.
For example:
- Instead of saying, “He’s between a rock and a hard place.”
- You could say, “It was like he was caught in a tunnel with a speeding train’s light growing larger and larger.”
- Both convey the idea of unavoidable pain to come, but the second sentence has more original imagery.
How to Avoid Writing Cliches #4: Moon/June Rhymes
What is a cliche rhyme? They are old, tired rhymes that songwriters and poets need to be aware of:
- These types of rhymes are called Moon/June
- They got this name because of how the moon/June word pair was overused in the early tin pan alley days.
- Use an online thesaurus and rhyming dictionary to help you find original word and rhyme choices.
For more on Moon/June rhymes:
Final Thoughts
Takeaway points:
- What is a cliche? Cliches are phrases that have been used so often that they lose their impact on your audience.
- One way to become aware of cliches is to know the most common ones.
- Also, try to avoid writing the first thing that you think of and edit out cliches after you’ve written your first draft.
Moreover, songwriters and poets must stay away from old, tired rhymes.
Have fun writing!
Related Posts
- What’s Assonance and What’s the Best Way to Use it in Writing?
- Alliteration Meaning: Examples of Alliteration in Poetry and Songs
- 12 Simile Examples That Aren’t Cliches (How to Write Them)
- How to Write a Parody Song without Being Sued
- Writing Well Crafted Songs
© 2025 Geoffrey Keith
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