AP Literature
Unit 4 Vocabulary
Words Relating to
banal: (buh-NAL) adj. – dull or stale because of overuse; trite; hackneyed
cliché: (klee-SHAY) n. – an idea or expression that has become stale due to overuse
derivative: (diy-RIH-vuh-tiv) adj. – made commonplace by overuse; trite (n. hack; one who copies or
imitates the work of others)
hackneyed: (HAK-need) adj. – spread out; not concise; wordy
insipid (in-SIH-pud) adj. – lacking flavor or taste; unexciting
lackluster: (LAK-luhs-ter) adj. – lacking vitality, energy, or brightness; boring
mundane: (muhn-DAYN) adj. – commonplace; ordinary
pedestrian: (peh-DES-tree-un) adj. – commonplace, ordinary, unoriginal, mundane
platitude: (PLA-tuh-tood) n. – quality of being dull; an obvious remark uttered as if it were original
prosaic: (pro-ZAY-ik) adj. – dull; commonplace
trite: (TRYT) adj. – unoriginal and stale due to overuse
vapid: (VA-pid) adj. – lacking freshness and zest; flat; stale