trope
trope Lexical Profile
trope Game Scores & Validity
• noun
A significant or recurrent theme, motif, or storytelling convention in literature, film, or popular culture.
"The reluctant hero is a classic trope found in many fantasy novels."
A figurative or metaphorical use of a word or expression, such as metaphor, metonymy, or irony.
"The poet used the trope of autumn to represent the final years of human life."
A musical or textual interpolation added to a liturgical chant in the medieval Christian church, or a traditional melodic formula in Jewish cantillation.
"Medieval monks embellished the plainchant by inserting a festive trope during Easter services."
• verb
To use, interpret, or embellish with figurative language, rhetorical tropes, or liturgical additions.
"In her essay, the critic examines how nineteenth-century novelists troped the concept of industrialization."
Word Nuance & Usage
In traditional rhetoric, a trope strictly refers to figurative language (such as metaphor or irony), whereas in modern popular usage it broadly denotes any recurring storytelling convention, motif, or cliché.
• Rhymes for trope
Word Origin & Etymology
Borrowed from Latin tropus ('a figure of speech'), from Ancient Greek tropos ('a turn, direction, or manner'), derived from the verb trepein ('to turn').