Trivia Time

Which composer wrote the famous "da da da DUM" motif in his Symphony No. 5?

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motif

American  

[moh-teef] / moʊˈtif /

noun

• motifs
  plural

1. a recurring subject, theme, idea, etc., especially 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.

   Pulmonary problems were a grim motif in his life.

4. Biochemistry. a distinct pattern of amino acids in a function-specific protein sequence.

   No polyproline motif has been observed in these yeast proteins.

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motif British  

/ məʊˈtiːf /

noun

1. a distinctive idea, esp a theme elaborated on in a piece of music, literature, etc

2. Also: motive. a recurring form or shape in a design or pattern

3. a single added piece of decoration, such as a symbol or name on a jumper, sweatshirt, etc

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motif Cultural  

1. In literature, art, or music, a recurring set of words, shapes, colors, or notes. In the poem “The Raven,” by Edgar Allan Poe, for example, the word nevermore is a motif appearing at the end of each stanza. Likewise, the first four notes of the Fifth Symphony of Ludwig van Beethoven are a motif that is developed and reshaped throughout the work.

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• motifs
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of motif

First recorded in 1840–50; from French; see origin at motive

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Explanation

The race car decor in your room, the refrain of a song, the idea or object that keeps popping up in a story — these are all motifs, reoccurring elements that move throughout and shape music, art and novels. This French import is related to the Latin verb movere which means "to move." Think about a pattern or design that moves throughout something when you hear motif. Have you ever been to a restaurant with a tropical or Wild West motif? Do you like dresses with a floral motif? In novels, a motif can be a recurring idea like revenge or an object that symbolizes an idea. A character might notice shadows throughout a story which symbolize his dark past.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

motif motifs

The panel is filled with illuminated diamond shapes, a longstanding motif in the company’s designs.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 23, 2026

That’s also why, when “Fjord” opens with soft piano chords playing “Amazing Grace,” it’s safe to assume the song will be an integral motif throughout the film.

From Salon ● Sep. 19, 2026

DFT calculations indicated that this newly formed motif makes it much easier to break the C-H bonds in methane, one of the key steps in activating the molecule.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 9, 2026

Leeds' new away shirt takes the Yorkshire rose from its club badge and repeats that motif across the base of the shirt.

From BBC ● Aug. 9, 2026

To help the creative process, you might give students a short, simple rhythm to work with to create the motif.

From "Music and the Child" by Natalie Sarrazin

Yes, you’re getting a glorified ad for a tech company, but this wasn’t going to have the uncanny-valley, human-repelling motifs so common in all the other infomercials for A.I. products.

From Slate ● Oct. 1, 2026

The "polka dot queen" channelled hallucinations and battles with mental health into vibrant art featuring her trademark dots, nets and infinity motifs over a career spanning decades and continents.

From Barron's ● Aug. 27, 2026

Across these works, striking motifs recur—strange images and phrases.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 18, 2026

More elaborate designs, including hatched bands, grids, and diamond-shaped motifs, also showed evidence of rotation, translation, repetition, and "embedding," i.e., the ability to build hierarchical levels of signs within the same surface.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 9, 2026

Just as the period’s architects designed buildings from the same limited collection of motifs and shapes, Haydn and his contemporaries were designing music from a similarly limited catalogue.

From "The Story of Music" by Howard Goodall

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