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
Set in both Egypt and Albuquerque, New Mexico, Cronin’s wonderfully inventive script drags one of cinema’s oldest tropes out of its sarcophagus and into a modern American home.
—
Alison Foreman, IndieWire, 14 Apr. 2026
There are lots of guys to keep track of over the course of a very long runtime, but each soldier is specific and mostly manages to avoid the war movie tropes.
—Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 13 Apr. 2026
These pastors have adapted old Christian tropes to contemporary moral language.
—Anna Piela, The Conversation, 13 Apr. 2026
While embracing familiar tropes, They Cloned Tyrone weaves an original story that stands out as a diamond in the thick of many Netflix duds.
—James Mercadante, Entertainment Weekly, 12 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for trope
Alison Foreman, IndieWire, 14 Apr. 2026
There are lots of guys to keep track of over the course of a very long runtime, but each soldier is specific and mostly manages to avoid the war movie tropes.
—Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 13 Apr. 2026
These pastors have adapted old Christian tropes to contemporary moral language.
—Anna Piela, The Conversation, 13 Apr. 2026
While embracing familiar tropes, They Cloned Tyrone weaves an original story that stands out as a diamond in the thick of many Netflix duds.
—James Mercadante, Entertainment Weekly, 12 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for trope
Recent Examples of Synonyms for trope
Noun
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Ever since, intelligence officers have ruefully invoked that truism whenever they’re blamed for a major screwup.—
Shane Harris,
The Atlantic,
5 Apr. 2026
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But, travel experts say, that truism doesn't apply during this tumultuous period.—
ANDREA SACHS THE WASHINGTON POST,
Arkansas Online,
29 Mar. 2026
Noun
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In the early 2000s, Sears began to use its website — the new iteration of its catalog — to help pioneer the now-commonplace practices of buying goods online and picking them up in store.—
Domenica Bongiovanni,
USA Today,
15 Apr. 2026
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By the time Szeemann was invited to organize two consecutive installments of the Venice Biennale (in 1999 and 2001), the criticism of curators’ assuming the role of meta-artists, in Szeemann’s case with quasi-shamanistic aspirations, had become a commonplace.—
Daniel Birnbaum,
Artforum,
2 Apr. 2026
Noun
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But for UConn, the platitudes feel profoundly honest.—
Emily Adams,
Hartford Courant,
29 Mar. 2026
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Donovan reiterated a series of platitudes that haven’t changed during his time with the Bulls.—
Julia Poe,
Chicago Tribune,
26 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Trope.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/trope. Accessed 25 Apr. 2026.
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