trope
Use Trope in a sentence
noun
1.
Rhetoric.
a.
any literary or rhetorical device, as metaphor, metonymy, synecdoche, and irony, that consists in the use of words in other than their literal sense.
b.
an instance of this. Compare figure of speech.
2.
a phrase, sentence, or verse formerly interpolated in a liturgical text to amplify or embellish.
3.
(in the philosophy of Santayana) the principle of organization according to which matter moves to form an object during the various stages of its existence.
Origin:
1525–35; < Latin tropus figure in rhetoric < Greek trópos turn, turning, turn or figure of speech, akin to trépein to turn
1525–35; < Latin tropus figure in rhetoric < Greek trópos turn, turning, turn or figure of speech, akin to trépein to turn
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Link To trope
00:10
Trope
is always a great word to know.
So is flibbertigibbet. Does it mean:
| a calculus or concretion found in the stomach or intestines of certain animals, esp. ruminants, formerly reputed to be an effective remedy for poison. |
| a chattering or flighty, light-headed person. |
Collins
World English Dictionary
trope (trəʊp) ![[Click for IPA pronunciation guide]](http://static.sfdict.com/dictstatic/g/d/dictionary_questionbutton_default.gif) | |
| —n | |
| 1. | rhetoric a word or expression used in a figurative sense |
| 2. | an interpolation of words or music into the plainsong settings of the Roman Catholic liturgy |
| [C16: from Latin tropus figurative use of a word, from Greek tropos style, turn; related to trepein to turn] | |
| -trope | |
| —n combining form | |
| indicating a turning towards, development in the direction of, or affinity to: heliotrope | |
| [from Greek tropos a turn] | |
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Etymonline
Word Origin & History
trope
1533, from L. tropus "a figure of speech," from Gk. tropos "turn, direction, turn or figure of speech," related to trope "a turning" and trepein "to turn," from PIE base trep- "to turn" (cf. Skt. trapate "is ashamed, confused," prop. "turns away in shame;" L. trepit "he turns"). Technically, in rhetoric,
a figure of speech which consists in the use of a word or phrase in a sense other than that which is proper to it.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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Encyclopedia Britannica
Encyclopedia
trope
in medieval church music, melody, explicatory text, or both added to a plainchant melody. Tropes are of two general types: those adding a new text to a melisma (section of music having one syllable extended over many notes); and those inserting new music, usually with words, between existing sections of melody and text.
Learn more about trope with a free trial on Britannica.com.
Encyclopedia Britannica, 2008. Encyclopedia Britannica Online.
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Example sentences
The influence of speculation is a common trope in stories examining the current oil boom.
The truth is it's such a trope to sit around and bash your parents.
The intellect is stimulated by the statement of truth in a trope, and the will by clothing the laws of life in illusions.
The old trope that scientists can't communicate needs to be binned.
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