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

Its leitmotif is push and pull: unsettling, bruising, often brutal, yet ultimately life-affirming.

From BBC • Sep. 4, 2025

It was a leitmotif in everything that was being said for decades,” Traube said, adding that he is upset both by the resurgence of antisemitism and the lack of a “massive popular reaction” against it.

From Seattle Times • Nov. 9, 2023

A leitmotif in "Strange New Worlds" relates to Pike foreknowledge that a life-changing accident lurks in his future.

From Salon • Aug. 18, 2023

The goal of a leitmotif is to help the listener identify a main character or theme in the story.

From "Music and the Child" by Natalie Sarrazin