Phrases, Clauses, and Sentences
Idioms, Clichés, Jargon, and Euphemisms
Clichés are trite, overused expressions, many of which rely on figurative language. In the beginning, no expression is a cliché; it's a fresh way of saying something. Pretty as a picture, old as the hills, and smart as a whip were once, hard as it is to believe, new and exciting comparisons, but through overuse, they've become tiresome, and most writers know enough to avoid them. Notice, however, that less obvious examples turn up frequently in newspapers, in magazines, or on television. For example, someone may be following his dream, while someone else may be trying to burst his bubble. Sometimes what you see is what you get, but other times you meet people who have a hidden agenda. Watch out for real-life superheroes, unsung heroes, human dynamos, living legends, people who push the panic button, people who live in glass houses, and even the man in the street.
Other types of overused phrases. Along with stale figures of speech are phrases that have been used so often they are clichés: agonizing reappraisal, contributing factor, first and foremost, grave danger, grieving widow, grisly murder, in the final analysis, integral part, once and for all, one step closer, the be-all and end-all, tried and true, vital role, unforeseen obstacles, and so on. Faddish words also quickly become overused, so beware of them.
Mixing clichés
A television newswoman described a man as having signed his own death knell. Her error illustrates what can happen to a cliché. The newswoman no doubt meant signed his own death warrant, an overused expression that means to cause one's own destruction through a particular act. But she confused that expression with another, sounding the death knell, which means to announce the end of something, or, by extension, to cause the end of something, as in “Cutting off the funds sounded the death knell for the struggling program.” Literally, a knell is the sound of a bell ringing slowly, as at a funeral. Obviously, you don't sign a knell.
What happened here was that the newswoman grabbed a familiar phrase and used it without being sure of its meaning or, worse, without caring about its meaning. clichés invite writers and speakers to use them in what is a knee-jerk reaction. Lack of awareness—frequently the villain in bad writing—leads to mistakes. Sometimes the mistakes are funny, as in “He really gets my dandruff up” instead of “He really gets my dander up.” ( Dander means anger or temper, the expression to get one's dander up means to lose one's temper, become enraged.)
Avoiding clichés
Before you use any expression or description that sounds familiar to you, think about it carefully. Is there a better way to say what you want to say? Would it be better simply to use literal language than to rely on an expression that is old hat? He was enraged, rather than he was hopping mad or mad as a wet hen, for example? But whatever you do, don't use a cliché and then apologize for it, for example, Pardon my use of the cliché, but it's true that all that glitters is not gold. The apology does nothing but draw attention to the tired expression.
Using clichés in new ways
Finally, sometimes clichés get new life with a witty turn or a surprising application. For example, the actress Tallulah Bankhead twisted a standard expression when she said, “There is less to this than meets the eye,” and H. Rap Brown did it with his line “Violence is as American as cherry pie.” If you can use a trite expression or cliché in a new, surprising way, you are overcoming the predictability that is its stock in trade. But, as with all attempts at cleverness, be sure that you're achieving the effect you want and not just making a bad joke.
