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topos

American  
[toh-pohs, ‑pos] / ˈtoʊ poʊs, ‑pɒs /

noun

plural

topoi

  1. a convention or motif, especially in a literary work; a rhetorical convention.

topos British  
/ ˈtɒpɒs /

noun

  1. a basic theme or concept, esp a stock topic in rhetoric

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of topos

First recorded in 1935–40; from Greek (koinós) tópos “(common) place”; topic ( def. )

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.