1
general::
typical
a typical person or thing is a good example of that type of person or thing:
• With his camera around his neck, he looked like a typical tourist. • The windows are typical of houses built during this period.
classic
used to describe a very typical and very good example of something:
• It was a classic case of the cure being worse than the disease. • a classic mistake • The book is a classic example of great teamwork.
archetypal
the archetypal person or thing is the most typical example of that kind of person or thing, and has all their most important qualities:
• the archetypal English village • Indiana Jones is the archetypal adventure hero.
quintessential
used when you want to emphasize that someone or something is the very best example of something – used especially when you admire them very much:
• the quintessential guide to New York • Robert Plant is the quintessential rock ‘n’ roll singer.
stereotypical
having the characteristics that many people believe a particular type of person or thing has – used when you think these beliefs are not true:
• Hollywood films are full of stereotypical images of women as wives and mothers. • He challenges stereotypical ideas about people with disabilities.
representative
containing the most common types of people or things that are found in something, and showing what it is usually like:
• a representative sample of college students
characteristic
very typical of a particular type of thing, or of someone’s character or usual behaviour:
• Each species of bird has its own characteristic song. • What gives Paris its characteristic charm? • He played with his characteristic skill. • the characteristic symptoms of the disease
be the epitome of something
to be the best possible example of a particular type of person or thing or of a particular quality:
• His house was thought to be the epitome of good taste.
Longman-Thesaurus
2
general::
adj. VERBS be, look, seem | become | consider sth, regard sth as, take sth as You must not take this attitude as typical of English people. ADV. extremely, highly, very | absolutely, altogether, entirely, just That's altogether typical of Tom! They're going to be late? Now, isn't that just typical? | by no means, not necessarily East Anglia is by no means typical of rural Britain. | fairly, pretty, quite, rather PREP. of Julia is fairly typical of her age group.
Oxford Collocations Dictionary