as in cliche
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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Recent Examples of trope
For Valentine’s Day, Leah joined us to discuss a selection of unconventional romance novels that use some of her favorite conventional tropes.
—
The New Yorker, 12 Feb. 2025
Du Maurier makes good use of many of the usual tropes of the Gothic genre, especially uncanny doubling: Relentlessly and unfavorably compared to the Manderley estate’s bewitching former mistress, the nameless narrator is pushed to the brink of sanity by the sinister housekeeper, Mrs. Danvers.
—M.l. Rio, New York Times, 14 Feb. 2025
Thompson, Ha and Brownell also say that Season 4 will dive much more into the Regency era’s upstairs-downstairs class politics than previous seasons, due to Sophie being of a lower class than Benedict and the Bridgerton family, as well as the fairytale and forbidden love tropes.
—Jennifer Maas, Variety, 14 Feb. 2025
Tykwer was one of a new generation of film geek obsessives, autodidacts who gorged themselves on midnight screenings, VHS tapes and repertory theaters, whose movies would mash up the tropes and obsessions of cinema history with the fresh aesthetics of video games and music videos.
—Scott Roxborough, The Hollywood Reporter, 12 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for trope
The New Yorker, 12 Feb. 2025
Du Maurier makes good use of many of the usual tropes of the Gothic genre, especially uncanny doubling: Relentlessly and unfavorably compared to the Manderley estate’s bewitching former mistress, the nameless narrator is pushed to the brink of sanity by the sinister housekeeper, Mrs. Danvers.
—M.l. Rio, New York Times, 14 Feb. 2025
Thompson, Ha and Brownell also say that Season 4 will dive much more into the Regency era’s upstairs-downstairs class politics than previous seasons, due to Sophie being of a lower class than Benedict and the Bridgerton family, as well as the fairytale and forbidden love tropes.
—Jennifer Maas, Variety, 14 Feb. 2025
Tykwer was one of a new generation of film geek obsessives, autodidacts who gorged themselves on midnight screenings, VHS tapes and repertory theaters, whose movies would mash up the tropes and obsessions of cinema history with the fresh aesthetics of video games and music videos.
—Scott Roxborough, The Hollywood Reporter, 12 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for trope
Cite this Entry
“Trope.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/trope. Accessed 12 Mar. 2025.
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