What is the meaning of threadbare?

Repeated too often; overfamiliar through overuse.
- usage: "bromidic sermons"; "his remarks were trite and commonplace"; "hackneyed phrases"; "a stock answer"; "repeating threadbare jokes"; "parroting some timeworn axiom"; "the trite metaphor `hard as nails'"
- synonyms: banal, commonplace, hackneyed, old-hat, shopworn, stock, timeworn, tired, trite, well-worn
Having the nap worn away so that the threads show through.
- usage: "threadbare rugs"

|15 years ago|951 views|share |citing

APA	WordNet. (2010). threadbare. Retrieved September 21, 2026, from http://smartdefine.org/threadbare/definitions/1185354
Chicago	WordNet. 2010. "threadbare" http://smartdefine.org/threadbare/definitions/1185354 (accessed September 21, 2026).
Harvard	WordNet 2010, threadbare, Smart Define, viewed 21 September, 2026, <http://smartdefine.org/threadbare/definitions/1185354>.
MLA	WordNet. "threadbare" 23 October 2010. Web. 21 September 2026. <http://smartdefine.org/threadbare/definitions/1185354>

Alternative definitions by