Etymology From Latin prōverbiālis, equivalent to proverb + -ial
1
Of, resembling, or expressed as a proverb, cliché, fable, or fairy tale.
The busyness of a beaver is proverbial.
The beaver in this instance upheld the reputation of the proverbial one: her output was prodigious.
1 more example
Doris: You're making me feel like the proverbial stepmother.1947, Miracle on 34th Street (transcript)
2
Optionally placed before an element of a well-known proverb or metaphor to emphasize that the element is not being used in a literal sense (see Usage notes below)
the proverbial smoking gun
the proverbial spilled milk
2 more examples
The visit was a warning shot across our proverbial bow
“We don’t like it, it’s the proverbial ‘crap sandwich’ that they talk about but what’s the best move from here and we think it’s the way to go,” said Rep. Mark Walker, chairman of the large group of fiscal conservatives known as the Republican Study Committee. […] “I think there is a growing consensus, whether it’s February or sometime, that we don’t want to be on this proverbial hamster wheel,” he said.2018 January 17, Deidre Walsh, quoting Mark Walker, “Republican Study Committee Chairman supports ‘crap sandwich’ funding bill”, in CNN, archived from the original on 18 Jan 2018:
3
Widely known; famous; stereotypical.
I grew up in a prefab house on Main Street in 1950s suburbia, the second and last child of a proverbial nuclear family.
Mr. Obama has presented himself as a fresh face, unsteeped in Washington and the proverbial “politics as usual.”2007 May 17, Mark Leibovich, “For ’08 Résumés, Don’t Ask Them to Fill in Blanks”, in The New York Times, archived from the original on 25 Jan 2021: