as in cliché
an idea or expression that has been used by many people
a screenplay that reads like a catalog of mystery-thriller tropes the narrative trope of two rival characters falling in love by the end of the story
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of trope
In what long ago became a prestige television trope, each episode begins with a pre-credits snippet of backstory.
—
Daniel Fienberg, HollywoodReporter, 26 Dec. 2025
Advertisement In an action media landscape of dark, twisted dramas, Study Group refuses to take itself too seriously, cleverly subverting many of the genre’s tropes.
—Kayti Burt, Time, 18 Dec. 2025
Tendi reveals how coup leaders used patriarchal tropes and language to rally support for their actions from both domestic and international audiences.
—Foreign Affairs, 16 Dec. 2025
Gift them one of these romance trope hats from 831 Stories.
—Clare Mulroy, USA Today, 11 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for trope
Daniel Fienberg, HollywoodReporter, 26 Dec. 2025
Advertisement In an action media landscape of dark, twisted dramas, Study Group refuses to take itself too seriously, cleverly subverting many of the genre’s tropes.
—Kayti Burt, Time, 18 Dec. 2025
Tendi reveals how coup leaders used patriarchal tropes and language to rally support for their actions from both domestic and international audiences.
—Foreign Affairs, 16 Dec. 2025
Gift them one of these romance trope hats from 831 Stories.
—Clare Mulroy, USA Today, 11 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for trope
Recent Examples of Synonyms for trope
Noun
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Warfare Alex Garland and Ray Mendoza’s Warfare is an admirable attempt to counter the truism that there’s no such thing as an anti-war movie — that all war movies, however gruesome or wrenching, effectively (and often unwittingly) wind up glamorizing combat to some degree.—
Alison Willmore,
Vulture,
1 Dec. 2025
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Kemp does warn his readers to be skeptical of truisms about the nature of history and the odds of apocalypse.—
Linda Kinstler,
The Atlantic,
1 Dec. 2025
Noun
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The 1945 War Brides Act largely diverged from these previous measures, helping to dismantle the Asian exclusion made commonplace in the 19th and early 20th centuries.—
Anna Storti,
The Conversation,
8 Jan. 2026
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In the last year, after all, heartrending images like these have become part of the ordinary, the everyday, the commonplace.—
Leonard Pitts Jr,
Miami Herald,
1 Jan. 2026
Noun
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Eritrea had trounced Zanzibar to reach the semi-finals of the CECAFA Under-20 Championship — consisting of national teams from east and central African nations — when, amid the celebrations and platitudes from government officials back home, the players made their move.—
Simon Hughes,
New York Times,
12 Jan. 2026
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On one hand, the platitudes of traditional sportsbook operators fracturing under a droplet of business pressure reflects how the world works.—
Dan Bernstein,
Sportico.com,
9 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Trope.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/trope. Accessed 25 Jan. 2026.
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