WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2026
ba•nal•i•ty /bəˈnæləti/USA pronunciation
n., pl. -ties. [countable] an instance of banal writing, speaking, or thinking.
WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2026- [uncountable] the state or quality of being banal.
ba•nal /bəˈnæl, -ˈnɑl, ˈbeɪnəl/USA pronunciation
adj.
WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026- lacking freshness or originality;
trite:a banal plot.
ba•nal
(bə nal′, -näl′, bān′l),USA pronunciation adj.
ba•nal•i•ty
(bə nal′i tē, bā-),USA pronunciation n.
ba•nal′ly, adv.
- devoid of freshness or originality; hackneyed;
trite:a banal and sophomoric treatment of courage on the frontier.
- French; Old French: pertaining to a ban (see ban2, -al1)
- 1745–55
- See commonplace.
'banality' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):