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

• banality
• bromide
• chestnut
• cliché
• cliche
• commonplace
• groaner
• homily
• platitude
• shibboleth
• 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

Engage your team with ongoing education to help avoid harmful tropes in the workspace and in your brand messaging. —Nicole Dunn, Forbes.com, 21 May 2025

But the way in which the Rob Thomas drama played with those tropes while also creating genuinely compelling mysteries made the show a unique presence in the teen drama space, especially when Veronica chose to embrace her age and live life to the fullest. —Wilson Chapman, IndieWire, 20 May 2025

To a degree, the character exemplifies the misogynistic fin-de-siècle trope of women as vampiric beasts. —Alex Ross, New Yorker, 19 May 2025

His systematic dismantling of one of the league’s top defenses — led by two premier point-of-attack stoppers on a team with championship pedigree — silenced the tired trope that in a league full of giants, a 6-foot-1 guard can’t control the game. —Kristian Winfield, New York Daily News, 13 May 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