trope

1 of 2

noun

ˈtrōp 

1

a(1)

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

… declaring humans to be animals is a trope that political leaders … have employed for centuries to rally negative sentiment against other people.

—William Schulz

… he does not worry too much about a turn of phrase, the exact figure of speech, the illuminating trope.

—Newgate Callendar

(2)

: cliché

… the tired trope of Democrats as tax-and-spend liberals.

—Charles M. Blow

In his first Inaugural Address, Jefferson sounded a conciliatory, bipartisan note … that "we are all Republicans, we are all Federalists"—a trope copied in many inaugural addresses to follow.

—Sean Wilentz

"Eat healthy!" is a trope we're all used to hearing—and with good reason.

—Emma Gray

b

: a common theme or device (as in the arts) : motif

the usual horror movie tropes

The enemies-to-lovers trope is one of the best in romance.

—Emily Burack

… the song employs the familiar trope of a young woman with big dreams as she leaves the country for the city …

—Jon Freeman

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 of trope

Noun

• cliché
• truism
• commonplace
• platitude
• chestnut

Examples of trope in a Sentence

Noun

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

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Authorities found a note on Karmelo Anthony's phone with a long list of disturbing racial tropes and slurs about Blacks, whites and Hispanics. — J.d. Miles, CBS News, 20 Aug. 2026

Xander literally split into his good and bad qualities, Faith and Buffy, already foils, swapping bodies, the Buffybot, Joan the Vampire Slayer, and so on—and doubling is of course a classic literary trope. — Emily Temple, Literary Hub, 18 Aug. 2026

The scientist who is compelled by an unstoppable need to know, despite being aware of the danger, is a familiar trope in sci-fi and horror novels and films. — Carline Tromp, The Dial, 18 Aug. 2026

His content has also included references to Adolf Hitler and explicit antisemitic tropes. — Lauren Peller, ABC News, 17 Aug. 2026

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