How would I say that a phrase or word has "lost it's meaning due to constant repetition."
Take the word "awesome":
"Awesome" used to denote a situation in which the speaker (or writer) was overwhelmed with "awe." "Awesome" is now used as a measure of how "interesting" something is and isn't terribly high on that rating scale.
How would I describe the loss of meaning due to the constant repetition of the word "Awesome"?
Take George Santaya's words "Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it":
People often say this phrase to try and instigate action but because of it's overuse, it no longer has any meaning. It's just something people say when they talk about The Holocaust, or the bad grades they got last semester in college.
How would I describe the loss of meaning due to the constant repetition of the phrase "Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it"?
Best Answer
Oh, I got it: hackneyed.
Still uncommon enough that it hasn't become cliched to the point of banality, resulting in an empty, vapid, platitude.
:)