From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishmotifmo‧tif /məʊˈtiːf $ moʊ-/ ●○○ noun [countable] 1 AAGAINan idea, subject, or image that is regularly repeated and developed in a book, film, work of art etc The theme of creation is a recurrent motif in Celtic mythology.2 PATTERNa small picture or pattern used to decorate something plain a white T-shirt with a blue fish motif3 APMan arrangement of notes that is often repeated in a musical work
Examples from the Corpus
motif• The second level, that of poetic or dream symbolism, is inherent in all folk-tales, traditions and motifs of regeneration.• The use of these various processes may have provided the vehicles for the transmission of decorative motifs, by copying.• She was wearing a plain white T-shirt with a fish motif in blue and green.• Sylvia chose a set of china with a floral motif.• Such an interpretation is probably possible, but two of the major motifs of Walden argue against it.• Between these two mosaics, however, there are few obvious similarities of motif.• In this case we find a classic call-refusal motif.• Who, what, when, why, and how, the reportorial motif?• an action movie with a revenge motif• Tolkien however used the play for both more and less than motifs.Origin motif (1800-1900) French Old French; → MOTIVE1 