Sayings, homilies, maxims, truisms, old saws, proverbs, aphorisms, euphemisms, figures of speech, adages, axioms. . .

Whatever you want to call them, clichés are the everyday expressions we’ve grown up with and express exactly the right sentiment for the occasion. They are familiar and comforting, like an old bathrobe, and I love them. Unfortunately, editors don’t. (Read The Write Life Nov. 2008 to see why.)

Nevertheless, I made my own collection of clichés over the past few years, accumulated bit by bit from my reading, experience, family, and even television. Most of them are old, but a few have cropped up more recently. I’ve amassed over 1600 (with a little help from my friends) and posted them here for your enjoyment.