trope

1 of 2

noun

ˈtrōp 

1

a

: a word or expression used in a figurative sense : figure of speech

b

: a common or overused theme or device : cliché

the usual horror movie tropes

2

: a phrase or verse added as an embellishment or interpolation to the sung parts of the Mass in the Middle Ages

-trope

2 of 2

noun combining form

: body characterized by (such) a state

allotrope

Synonyms

Noun

• cliche
• cliché
• truism

Examples of trope in a Sentence

Noun

a screenplay that reads like a catalog of mystery-thriller tropes

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Parks and Recreation is about government; journalism is its own sphere that has its own ethics and history and tropes. —Emily Zemler, Rolling Stone, 21 Sep. 2025

Those well-versed in cinematic tropes will know that these two are bound to spend time together outside of the dental office. —Peter Tonguette, The Washington Examiner, 19 Sep. 2025

The three Aud books are novels of character, crime fiction that uses the classic tropes of noir — first-person narrator, fast-moving prose, corruption in high places and crimes of desperation in the urban underbelly — without being noir. —Erik Pedersen, Oc Register, 19 Sep. 2025

Dylan, Kelly and Brenda The Dylan, Kelly and Brenda trifecta practically invented the love triangle trope on TV. —Stephanie Sengwe, PEOPLE, 19 Sep. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Noun

borrowed from Latin tropus "figure of speech" (Medieval Latin, "embellishment to the sung parts of the Mass"), borrowed from Greek trópos "turn, way, manner, style, figurative expression," noun derivative from the base of trépein "to turn," probably going back to Indo-European *trep-, whence also Sanskrit trapate "(s/he) is ashamed, becomes perplexed," Hittite te-ri-ip-zi "(s/he) ploughs"

Note: Also compared is Latin trepit, glossed as vertit "(s/he) turns," but as this form is only attested in the lexicon of the grammarian Sextus Pompeius Festus, it may be a reconstruction based on the Greek word. The word tropes (genitive case) in the Old English translation of Bede's Ecclesiastical History is an isolated instance; the word was reborrowed from Latin or Greek in the 16th century.

Noun combining form

borrowed from Greek -tropos "turned, directed, living (in the manner indicated)," adjective derivative of trópos "turn, way, manner, style" — more at trope

First Known Use

Noun

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Rhymes for trope

• cope
• dope
• grope
• lope
• mope
• nope
• antelope
• bronchoscope
• cantaloupe
• cystoscope
• endoscope
• envelope