cookie-cutter

Thân thiện

The new housing development is full of cookie-cutter houses.

Definition

1. Adjective:
   • Lacking originality or individuality; mass-produced in appearance or nature: Describes something that is very similar to many others of its type, as if made from the same template or mold, often implying a lack of creativity or uniqueness.

Usage

• The adjective "cookie-cutter" is used attributively, meaning it typically comes before a noun to describe it.
• It carries a negative connotation, suggesting something is generic, standardized, and uninspired.

Examples

• Adjective:
  • The new housing development was full of cookie-cutter homes with identical floor plans.
  • The company's marketing strategy felt cookie-cutter and failed to address our unique market.
  • We are looking for innovative solutions, not cookie-cutter approaches.

Advanced Usage

• "Cookie-cutter" approach/solution/method: A standard, one-size-fits-all method that is applied without considering specific differences.
  • Applying a cookie-cutter solution to such a complex problem is unwise.
• "Cookie-cutter" style/design: A uniform, repetitive design.
  • The franchise restaurants all had a cookie-cutter style that made them easily recognizable but boring.

Variants and Related Words

• Cookie-cutter (noun): A kitchen tool for cutting cookie dough into shapes. (Note: This is the original, literal meaning from which the adjective derives.)
  • She used a star-shaped cookie-cutter to make the cookies.
• Formulaic (adj): Made or done according to a standard formula; predictable and unoriginal. (A close synonym for the adjective sense of "cookie-cutter".)
• Generic (adj): Characteristic of or relating to a class or group; not specific or unique.

Synonyms

• Standardized
• Uniform
• Mass-produced
• Unoriginal
• Stereotyped

Antonyms

• Unique
• Original
• Custom-made
• Distinctive
• Idiosyncratic

Related Idioms

• "Off the shelf": Ready-made and standard, not customized. (Conceptually related to "cookie-cutter".)
  • They purchased an off-the-shelf software package instead of developing a custom one.
• "One size fits all": Designed to be suitable for a wide range of situations or people, often inadequately. (Similar in meaning to a "cookie-cutter" approach.)
  • This one-size-fits-all policy does not work for our diverse student population.

Học thuật

Adjective

1. having the same appearance (as if mass-produced)
   • a suburb of cookie-cutter houses