Where does “cliché” come from?

cliché (French) comes from French clicher, from German Klitsch.

cliché (French): stereotype; negative; snapshot

Definitions

  1. stereotype; negative; snapshot

Ancestry of “cliché”, step by step

cliché traces back through two separate lines of ancestry.

via French clicher

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Frenchclicherto stereotype
2GermanKlitsch—

via Middle French clicher

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle Frenchclicher—
2Old Frenchcliquerto click, clack, sound, resound

Words derived from “cliché”

Every word from German Klitsch →Every word from French clicher →