Advertisement

Advertisement

snowclone

/ ˈəʊˌəʊ /

noun

  1. a verbal formula that is adapted for reuse by changing only a few words so that the allusion to the original phrase remains clear

“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012


Discover More

Word History and Origins

Origin of snowclone1

C21: from snow in reference to the common formula 'If the Inuit have N words for snow, then surely X have Y words for Z ' + clone
Discover More

Example Sentences

Examples have not been reviewed.

Goodall, by now adjusted to the idea that he did not invent the "peak X" snowclone, is thinking about why it caught the imagination.

From

Among linguists, Zimmer says, We are all is considered a subcategory of what’s known as a “snowclone,” a language template that gets riffed-on and repurposed over and over again.

From

In another promo, Hewitt, behind the rhetorical wheel of an Oldsmobile Snowclone, declares, “This is not your mother's Lifetime.”

From

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement


snow-cladsnow cone