as in cliches
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 tropes
The book is about primal insecurities and relatable fears, explored through the lens of classic horror tropes.
—
Daniel Fienberg, HollywoodReporter, 23 Oct. 2025
Unfortunately though, Cooper can’t escape certain hackneyed biopic tropes in representing the songwriting, which are almost impossible to avoid.
—Katie Walsh, Boston Herald, 23 Oct. 2025
Teens are also sick of storytelling tropes that include love triangles (sorry, Celine Song), toxic relationships framed as romantic, and relationships based mostly on physical attraction, per the survey.
—Brian Welk, IndieWire, 22 Oct. 2025
The kids navigate plenty of teen-movie tropes, too, but their combined magnetism lifts the entire movie.
—Brian Truitt, USA Today, 22 Oct. 2025
Toxic relationships and love triangles also ranked among the most tiresome or uninteresting tropes for young viewers.
—Andrew McGowan, Variety, 22 Oct. 2025
Unfortunately though, Cooper can’t escape certain hackneyed biopic tropes in representing the songwriting, which are almost impossible to avoid.
—Katie Walsh, Twin Cities, 22 Oct. 2025
Much more was delivered as the collection unfolded, bringing the style tropes and the histories of the house into a fresh, even disruptive sophistication and a contemporaneity that returned Coco Chanel as the point of reference all at once.
—Joelle Diderich, Footwear News, 8 Oct. 2025
While technically more of a succubus movie than a vampire story, Diablo Cody's criminally underrated (and superior) follow-up to 2007's Juno shares enough tropes with and homages to the vampire genre that its inclusion here is justified.
—Declan Gallagher, Entertainment Weekly, 7 Oct. 2025
Daniel Fienberg, HollywoodReporter, 23 Oct. 2025
Unfortunately though, Cooper can’t escape certain hackneyed biopic tropes in representing the songwriting, which are almost impossible to avoid.
—Katie Walsh, Boston Herald, 23 Oct. 2025
Teens are also sick of storytelling tropes that include love triangles (sorry, Celine Song), toxic relationships framed as romantic, and relationships based mostly on physical attraction, per the survey.
—Brian Welk, IndieWire, 22 Oct. 2025
The kids navigate plenty of teen-movie tropes, too, but their combined magnetism lifts the entire movie.
—Brian Truitt, USA Today, 22 Oct. 2025
Toxic relationships and love triangles also ranked among the most tiresome or uninteresting tropes for young viewers.
—Andrew McGowan, Variety, 22 Oct. 2025
Unfortunately though, Cooper can’t escape certain hackneyed biopic tropes in representing the songwriting, which are almost impossible to avoid.
—Katie Walsh, Twin Cities, 22 Oct. 2025
Much more was delivered as the collection unfolded, bringing the style tropes and the histories of the house into a fresh, even disruptive sophistication and a contemporaneity that returned Coco Chanel as the point of reference all at once.
—Joelle Diderich, Footwear News, 8 Oct. 2025
While technically more of a succubus movie than a vampire story, Diablo Cody's criminally underrated (and superior) follow-up to 2007's Juno shares enough tropes with and homages to the vampire genre that its inclusion here is justified.
—Declan Gallagher, Entertainment Weekly, 7 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for tropes
cliches
Noun
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Spoofing slashers and their tired cliches with a new perspective, the comedy features Alan Tudyk and Tyler Labine as good-natured hillbillies assumed to be backwoods psycho killers by a bunch of college students.—
Brian Truitt,
USA Today,
18 Oct. 2025
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New novels are rightly praised for breaking with traditional forms and criticized for turning to stale formulas and cliches.—
Nathaniel Moore
September 10,
Literary Hub,
10 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Tropes.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/tropes. Accessed 30 Oct. 2025.
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