adj. & n.
--adj. lacking originality; trite.
--n.
1. a an everyday saying; a platitude (uttered a commonplace about the weather). b an ordinary topic of conversation.
2 anything usual or trite.
3 a notable passage in a book etc. copied into a commonplace-book.
Phrases and idioms:
commonplace-book a book into which notable extracts from other works are copied for personal use.
Derivatives:
commonplaceness n.
Etymology: transl. of L locus communis Gk koinos topos general theme