leitmotif
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The Argentine author, whose writing habitually draws on the uncanny, here delivers a blend of superstition, dread and a leitmotif of mental instability in a register of acute psychological realism.
From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 9, 2025
Its leitmotif is push and pull: unsettling, bruising, often brutal, yet ultimately life-affirming.
From BBC • Sep. 4, 2025
In the “Barbie” film, “What Was I Made For?” plays a key role — an instrumental version of the song pops up like a leitmotif, soundtracking introspective, existential moments for its protagonist.
From Seattle Times • Mar. 10, 2024
But the truest leitmotif of my adventure was cheese.
From Salon • Oct. 9, 2023
At its simplest, leitmotif is a straightforward association of a nugget of tune with a character.
From "The Story of Music" by Howard Goodall
Vocabulary lists containing leitmotif
Opera Vocabulary
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Words Derived from German
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