Cliché: has egg on his face

Meaning: appears foolish. Meaning.
Rewrite 1: has mud on his dress shoes
Rewrite 2: wears his shirts inside out
Rewrite 3: has holes on the knees in his slacks
Rewrite 4: has yesterday’s spinach on his teeth

Comment: These rewrites might sound more like sloppy dressing, so some context might help solidify them. For instance, you might say something like “has holes in his Sunday-best slacks” or “went to work with his sweater inside out.” Of course, the more you have to say to get the point across the less effective it is as a metaphor.

More reading about clichés
What I found when I googled “clichés”:
• Tired of clichés and stereotypes in advertising. Title says it best.

Note: By providing links to other websites I am only showing you what is out there about clichés – I am not endorsing any content or opinion expressed there.

Check out the new alphabetical list of all my cliché rewrites available in the archive list at the right. To search the page using Internet Explorer, just go to “Edit” in the top menu bar, select “Find”, then enter the cliché or a word from it.