motif: Meaning and Definition of

mo•tif

Pronunciation: (mō-tēf'), [key]
— n.
  1. a recurring subject, theme, idea, etc., esp. in a literary, artistic, or musical work.
  2. a distinctive and recurring form, shape, figure, etc., in a design, as in a painting or on wallpaper.
  3. a dominant idea or feature: the profit motif of free enterprise.
Random House Unabridged Dictionary, Copyright © 1997, by Random House, Inc., on Infoplease.
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