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 book is crowded with characters, but “Sunshine Charlie” Mitchell, the head of National City Bank of New York, provides a sort of leitmotif.

From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 10, 2025

Through these depictions, the show tries to tell the histories of the nomadic, tribal and agrarian communities for whom resilient survival was the leitmotif and cloth a way of narrating their marginalised experiences.

From BBC • Mar. 29, 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

The King’s leitmotif, for example, might be 4 quarter notes played on a trumpet sound on a keyboard, or using an interval of a 5th on any instrument to sound regal and stately.

From "Music and the Child" by Natalie Sarrazin