NOTES ON CLICHES

1. AMITY BUSINESS SCHOOL
BASICS OF COMMUNICATION PROJECT ASSIGNMENT
TITLED
BARRIERS TO EFFECTIVE USE OF LANGUAGE: AVOIDING CLICHES
SUBMITTED BY:
SAKSHI TIWARI, MBA (GEN)

2. Preface
The project assignment is a compiled knowledge on avoiding clichés when it acts as a
barrier to effective use of language. How language can enhance communications, and
what restrict its boundaries. It throws light on Avoiding Clichés in particular. All efforts
were put to cover the subtopics and reach an understanding on how one can modify and
avoid the use of clichés in everyday business communications and lifestyle.
As it’s required of a good communicator that he be able to tailor the conversation that
stays simple yet smart, and the very purpose which is fulfillment of the intention of the
sender to the receiver is fulfilled.

3. “For last year's words belong to last year's language
and next year's words await another voice.”
― T.S. Eliot, Four Quartets
As you use language to make sense of your experiences, you no doubt come to see that
language and verbal communication can work both for you and against you. Language
allows us to communicate, but it can also lead to miscommunication and
misunderstandings. The same system we use to express our most intimate thoughts can be
frustrating when it fails to capture our thoughts, to represent what we want to express, and
to reach our audience. For all its faults, though, it is the best system we have, and part of
improving the communication process is the clear identification of where it breaks down.
Anticipate where a word or expression may need more clarification, resulting to reduced
errors and improved communication.
In this paper we will see a brief intro of barriers to use of effective language. In an article
titled “The Miscommunication Gap”, Susan Washburn lists several undesirable results of
poor communication and language in business.
 Damaged relationships.
 Loss of productivity.
 Inefficiency and rework.
 Conflict.
 Missed opportunities.
 Schedule slippage (delays, missed deadlines).
 Scopes creeps…or leap (gradual or sudden changes in an assignment that make it
more complex and difficult than it was originally understood to be).
 Wasted resources.
 Unclear or unmet requirements.
Words can serve either as a bridge, or a barrier, to understanding and communication of
meaning. Our goals of effective and efficient business communication mean an inherent
value of words and terms that keeps the bridge clear and free of obstacles.

4. CLICHÉ
A cliché or cliché is an expression, idea, or element of an artistic work which has become
overused to the point of losing its original meaning or effect, even to the point of being
trite or irritating, especially when at some earlier time it was considered meaningful or
novel.
It’s so easy to fall back on a familiar saying or idiom in order to convey your meaning
(message) when speaking or writing to someone else. What you’re trying to do is shorten
the length of time it takes to convey that feeling or idea. Often these sayings are trite and
overused, and therefore take for granted. They become clichés.
It is a once-clever word or phrase that has lost its impact through overuse. If you spoke or
wrote in clichés, how would your audience react? Let’s try it. How do you react when you
read this sentence: “A cliché is something to avoid like the plague”, for it is nothing but a
tired old war horse. As you can see, the problem with clichés is that they often sound silly
or boring.
Clichés are sometimes a symptom of lazy communication- the person using the cliché
hasn’t bothered to search for original words to convey the intended meaning. Clichés lose
their impact because readers and listeners tend to gloss over them, assuming their common
meaning while ignoring your specific use of them. As a result, they can be obstacles to
successful communication.
The problemis,the meaningthe senderassignmaynotbe the meaningunderstoodbythe other
person(the receiver).Manyvariablescan interfere withthe messagethe receiverhearssuchas:
 Sender or receivers native language.
 Receiver’s familiarity with your choice of phrase.
 Differences in regional dialect.
 Overall tone of the conversation.
 Power inequalities i.e. boss to employee.
 Using mixed metaphors.
CHARACTERISTICS OF CLICHÉ
CLICHES ARE OVERUSED EXPRESSIONS: At one time they might have been
original. But now they’re old and stale. They make reading (or listening to a speaker)
boring and bland. This is bad news for any business. You can neither inspire nor excite
without change.
WORDS MATTER: So don’t serve your readers or listeners tired speech. Instead create
new phrases because words are what matter as the content with what concreteness it’s
delivered in.

5. CLICHES DON’T ADD TO YOUR WRITING: instead they weaken it. Because they
come to us so easily, we usually write clichés without thought. And that lack of thought is
what will tell your audience you don’t care about them. No employee or customer wants
that.
Furthermore, clichés SELDOM SAY EXACTLY WHAT THEY MEAN. They are usually
vague and imprecise.
CLICHÉ TYPES
Clichés can be true or not and some are stereotypes. Clichés can be figurative or literal and
are overused.
 An example of a figurative cliché is “raining cats and dogs”, meaning it is raining
heavily.
 A literal cliché would be “to tell the truth” because you are going to do just that.
A figurative idiom can become cliché if it is used often enough in language. So there are
many examples of clichés, and different meanings and interpretations come into play with
every cliché. As time goes on, you may interpret them differently, and even create some
clichés of your own.
DEFINING A CLICHÉ
A cliché can be two things:
1. An overused expression, something that is said a lot that has become some common, it
no longer really has any relevance or is even noticed in conversation. Phrases such as “to
this day” or “next thing I knew” are examples of such a cliché, and you often say these
phrases without noticing you are doing so.
2. An idea with a different meaning from its literal meaning. For example, the phrases “
sweaty palms” or “twinkling eyes” have come to mean more than the fact that you palms
are just sweaty or that your eye’s have a twinkle. When you say someone has sweaty
palms, everyone knows you mean “he is nervous” because the expression has become a
cliché.
ORIGIN OF THE WORD CLICHÉ
The word cliché comes from two origins:
 A sound – The French used the word to describe the sound that a matrix, or a mold
with letters on it, made when it was being dropped into molten metal to make a
 A printing plate – Oddly enough, the printing plate itself was called a cliché or a
stereotype and it was one of the first movable types in the world.

6. HIDDEN MEANINGS IN CLICHÉS
There are thousands of clichés in the world. Many of them have meanings that you can
obviously see, but some have meanings that are only clear if you know the context. For
example, the cliché, “any port in a storm” has a hidden meaning. The obvious meaning is
that, in a bad situation, anything will do. However this cliché can also be used to say that a
man has many friends or lovers.
CONTEXT- DRIVEN MEANINGS
Some clichés can be interpreted differently based on the context.
For example:
 “Do you think I am made of money?” implies that you don’t have any money.
 “I feel as if I am made of money” suggests just the opposite.
INTERPRETATION –DRIVEN MEANINGS
Not all clichés are necessarily true either. Some are a matter of interpretation.
For example:
 “In experience comes wisdom and with wisdom comes experience” is not
necessarily accurate in every case.
 “Tis better to have loved and lost, then to have never loved at all” is a commonly
used cliché. As time goes on, you may interpret them differently, and even create
some clichés of your own.
EXAMPLES OF CLICHÉS
Clichés come from all over the world. They can be interpreted differently, depending on
your cultural knowledge and identity. Often, a cliché starts with a smart remark that ends
up becoming very well known. Even if the origins are unclear, it’s clear to see that clichés
are a popular form of expression.
CLICHÉS THAT DESCRIBE TIME
Some clichés that refer to time include:
 Time will tell: this means that something will be revealed or become clear over
time.
 In the nick of time: this means something happened just in time.
 Lasted an eternity: this refers to something that lasts for a very long time ( or feels
like it does)
 In a jiffy: this means something will happen soon.

7. CLICHÉS THAT DESCRIBE PEOPLE
Some clichés that describe people include:
 As old as the hills: this describes someone very old.
 A diamond in the rough: this describes someone who has a great future.
 Weak as a kitten: a weak person.
 Without a care in the world: someone who is not plagued by problems or worries.
CLICHÉS ABOUT LOVE, LIFE AND EMOTIONS
 Opposites attract: this means that people who like different views are likely to fall in
love or become friends.
 Scared out of my wits: this describes being very frightened.
 When you have lemons, make lemonade: this cliché encourages you to have a
positive attitude even when things are going bad.
 Haste makes waste: this cliché stands for the premise that you will make mistakes
when you do things too quickly.
FAVOURITE CLICHÉS
There are numerous examples of clichés. Some clichés can be poetic, such as
Shakespeare’s, “A rose by any other name would smell as sweet.” This phrase became so
popular and widely used, that Shakespeare created a new cliché.
Some common American and English clichés are:
 “All that glitters is not gold.”
 “Don’t get your knickers in a twist.”
 Having “nerves of steel.”
 “Tail between his legs.”
TAKING CARE OF CLICHÉS
Clichés can be a writer’s worst enemy, and the reader usually doesn’t like clichés much
either. Writers from Jonathan Swift to George Orwell have ranted against the cliché like it
was the Devil tempting an innocent seminary student.
Clichés are the metaphors and turns of phrase that have become tired through overuse. All
walks of life, is a cliché, along with behind the eight ball and cried over spilled milk. When
these appear in copy, editors usually reach for a blue pencil or red pen and ask the writer
to come up with something better.
The word cliché began as nineteenth-century French term for a stereotype printing plate
made from metal type. Books in high demand were printed from the plates until the plates
wore out, just like a cliché is used until the energy of its first appearance is lost.

8. Writers never intend for a phrase they’ve composed to be used until it is hackneyed. The
book of proverbs published by the English playwright John Heywood in the 1500s
contains many sayings that were considered smart and original, only to have slouched into
the twenty-first century as clichés. Some of his memorable lines include better late than
never and this hitteth the nail on the head.
Clichés happen through no fault of the original author and tend to be perpetuated by
writers of lesser skill. You can admire the creator of every cloud has a silver lining, but
coming up with something of your own will please readers more.
AGED AND ON THE WAY CLICHÉS
Many clichés are also terribly out of date. For example lock, stock and barrel first
appeared in the letters of Sir Walter Scott in 1817, and refers to the pieces of a musket.
The lock is the firing mechanism, the stock is the wooden butt, and the barrel is the long
piece from which the bullets come out. There is no reason to use this saying today except
in period fiction.
The same goes for sell like hot cakes. It’s not a reference to a hearty breakfast, but instead
to early American cooked in pork fat or bear grease and sold at fairs and church benefits.
Back in the day is a newcomer to clichés. It’s only been around since 1997 and some claim
that it’s still fresh enough to be used. But the rule still applied: when everyone else is
using a phrase or expression, make sure you don’t.
HOW TO HANDLE CLICHÉS
Clichés often appear in early drafts when you’re trying to keep the writing good or trying
to communicate but you’ve run out of words to describe an action, event or person. That’s
fine, but it’s a good reason to think before or do successive drafts. Read your article or
story or speech draft with the meanest critics’ eye. Delete anything that might resemble a
cliché and replace it with words of your own.
STRIKING BACK AT CLICHÉS
One way to strike against the trite and the tedious is by using the anti cliché.
The anti cliché is a cliché that is twisted into a different shape, but is still recognizable. For
example, you could take what goes around comes around and change what come around
to probably should, to make what goes around probably should. The meaning is
significantly changed, but it is better to be thought of as cantankerous as as a bad writer or
speaker.
Good writers and speakers avoid clichés wherever they might lurk. Novelist and essayist
Martin Amis said “All writing is a campaign against cliché. Not just clichés of the pen but
clichés of the mind and clichés of the heart.”

9. BUSINESS CLICHÉS TO AVOID
 LET’S THINK OUTSIDE THE BOX: If a leader used this old phrase his audience
would be less connected but instead if he uses words like radical and unique one
would be far more impressed and motivated.
 LET’S WALK THE TALK: Yes one can do that...But better not say that. Rhyme
doesn’t help make this thought profound. It’s still perfectly banal and obvious.
 HERE’S A WIN-WIN STIUATION: The word “situation” here fails to give a visual
image. Adding win-win to it doesn’t help either. Of course life is better when both
sides win. There would have been no need to be a business professional to actually
use something as dull as that.
 WE NEED A PARADIGM SHIFT HERE: Who doesn’t? if we knew more ways to
achieve success we can open new ways. Another thought that shouldn’t have
required business school.
 WE NEED TO TEAR DOWN SOME SILOS: I have yet to see a silo anywhere
except on the prairie. Companies with departments that don’t talk to each other
have very little in common with facilities for storing grain. This is not only an old
metaphor; it’s a particularly weak one.
 LET’S BLUE SKY THIS: OK the word “blue” helps slightly here. At least it gives
a virtual image- and to boot, it’s a cheerful one. But turning a noun phrases into
(blue sky) a verb, not a really nice choice.
 THIS SHOULD GO VIRAL: This is a more recent cliché – a generation older, but
if one wants anything to be more popular it ought to be, by thinking of a more
inventive way to describe popularity.
When writing, question any comparison or image you are about to use. Clichés often
sneak in the barn door (that's a cliché, by the way) when we try to be descriptive. Is the
phrase you're about to use one that you've heard frequently in casual conversation,
newscasts, and advertising? If so, it is probably a cliché or on its way there.
of using stock phrases and images, be creative--but beware! Using the thesaurus has many
dangers, such as misusing a synonym that doesn't quite fit the meaning you want. Also,
inventing your own colorful descriptions can lead you as far astray as any worn-out
phrase. Finally, avoid "padding" your work with clichés.

10. Phrase Alternative
everyday
life
Can be cut completely or made specific. Consider:
everyday life is very different for a college student and,
say, a stock broker or homeless person!
in today's
society
Today, currently.
pros and
cons
Advantages and disadvantages, costs and benefits.
people Which ones? Be specific.
society
Who is "society"? Too many alternates exist to list.
Instead, be specific about which group of people is being
considered.
this day &
age
Today, presently.
Cliché-finder Websites
http://cliche.theinfo.org
http://www.westegg.com/cliche
http://writing2.richmond.edu/writing/wweb/cliche.html
http://www.phrases.org.uk/index.html

11. CONCLUSION
In a nutshell we learnt, in a wide sense what a cliché is. How it affects language, whether
it changes the effect the listener or the audience’s interpretation after listening the message
intended by the sender. How clichés can be avoided in business communication and
writing? Where the term was coined and took its origin from? How novelty and inherent
desire to change makes clichés. When the first time around any word or phrase is nice to
hear, but when it’s in trend people tend to use it as clutch to explain their viewpoints and
opinions in talking, writing and using language.
But for effective use of language there ought to be constant evolution of words and
there should be no place for lazy communications around.
References
 http://www.goodreads.com/quotes/tag/language
 http://writingcenter.ua.edu/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/cliches.pdf
 http://writing2.richmond.edu/writing/wweb/cliche.html
 Yagoda, Ben. The Sound on the Page: Style and Voice in Writing. NY:
HarperCollins,2004
 Beckson, Karl and Arthur Ganz, Literary Terms: A Dictionary, Third Edition,
Revised and Enlarged. NY: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1989.
 Amis, Martin. The War against Cliché: Essays and Reviews 1971-2000. NY:
Hyperion, 2001.