The one-sentence truth: Clichés are rarely wrong; they are simply so compressed and familiar that the reasoning has disappeared from them.
“Double-edged sword.” “In this day and age.” “Food for thought.” “The root of all evil.” “Every coin has two sides.” These phrases can feel efficient under exam pressure, but they often substitute a familiar shape for an actual argument.
Replace “double-edged sword”
State the trade-off. Instead of “AI is a double-edged sword”, write: “AI can raise productivity while redistributing risk towards workers whose tasks are easiest to automate.” Now the two edges have names and a mechanism.
Replace “in this day and age”
Name the relevant change. “As digital platforms lower the cost of publishing and distribution…” is better because it explains what is different about the present context.
Replace “everyone has different opinions”
Identify the source of disagreement: values, evidence, interests, incentives, experience or definitions. “The disagreement reflects competing priorities between autonomy and collective safety” gives the difference intellectual shape.
Replace “pros and cons”
Use benefits and costs when appropriate, but often trade-offs, competing objectives, distributional effects or limitations are more analytical.
Replace “root cause” carefully
Most social problems have several causal layers. Distinguish trigger, driver, determinant, structural cause and enabling condition instead of declaring one factor “the root”.
Replace “society as a whole”
Name the population or institution. Households, adolescents, low-income workers, firms, governments and urban residents do not experience the same effect.
Replace “technology is advancing rapidly”
Say what capability has changed and why it matters. “Generative systems have reduced the cost of producing plausible text and code, changing the speed at which cognitive tasks can be automated.” Specificity creates analysis.
Replace “education is the key to success”
Define success and mechanism. “Education can widen labour-market options by increasing skills and credentials, although its effect on mobility depends on school quality and the distribution of opportunity.”
Why clichés survive
They are easy to retrieve under pressure. The solution is not merely to ban them but to train alternative thinking frames: mechanism, condition, criterion, trade-off, distribution and consequence.
The cliché replacement test
- What exactly does the phrase mean here?
- Can I identify the mechanism?
- Can I name the competing values?
- Can I specify the group or context?
- Can I replace the metaphor with an analytical relationship?
Seven-day drill
- Collect ten clichés from old essays.
- Translate each into plain meaning.
- Add a mechanism.
- Add scope.
- Add a criterion.
- Rewrite one complete paragraph.
- Write a timed essay without stock metaphors.
Continue the JC2 GP vocabulary system
Return to General Paper Vocabulary Year 2 (JC2) and Vocabulary for Junior College (JC1–JC2).
Final thought
When a phrase feels ready-made, inspect it. GP rewards the thought you rebuilt yourself.