| Noun | 1. | rhetorical device - a use of language that creates a literary effect (but often without regard for literal significance) rhetoric - study of the technique and rules for using language effectively (especially in public speaking) device - something in an artistic work designed to achieve a particular effect rhetoric - using language effectively to please or persuade anacoluthia, anacoluthon - an abrupt change within a sentence from one syntactic structure to another asyndeton - the omission of conjunctions where they would normally be used repetition - the repeated use of the same word or word pattern as a rhetorical device anastrophe, inversion - the reversal of the normal order of words antiphrasis - the use of a word in a sense opposite to its normal sense (especially in irony) antithesis - the juxtaposition of contrasting words or ideas to give a feeling of balance antinomasia - substitution of a title for a name apophasis - mentioning something by saying it will not be mentioned aposiopesis - breaking off in the middle of a sentence (as by writers of realistic conversations) apostrophe - address to an absent or imaginary person catachresis - strained or paradoxical use of words either in error (as `blatant' to mean `flagrant') or deliberately (as in a mixed metaphor: `blind mouths') chiasmus - inversion in the second of two parallel phrases conversion - interchange of subject and predicate of a proposition ecphonesis, exclamation - an exclamatory rhetorical device; "O tempore! O mores" emphasis - special and significant stress by means of position or repetition e.g. enallage - a substitution of part of speech or gender or number or tense etc. (e.g., editorial `we' for `I') epanorthosis - immediate rephrasing for intensification or justification; "Seems, madam! Nay, it is" epiplexis - a rhetorical device in which the speaker reproaches the audience in order to incite or convince them hendiadys - use of two conjoined nouns instead of a noun and modifier hypallage - reversal of the syntactic relation of two words (as in `her beauty's face') hyperbaton - reversal of normal word order (as in `cheese I love') hypozeugma - use of a series of subjects with a single predicate hypozeuxis - use of a series of parallel clauses (as in `I came, I saw, I conquered') hysteron proteron - reversal of normal order of two words or sentences etc. (as in `bred and born') litotes, meiosis - understatement for rhetorical effect (especially when expressing an affirmative by negating its contrary); "saying `I was not a little upset' when you mean `I was very upset' is an example of litotes" onomatopoeia - using words that imitate the sound they denote paraleipsis, paralepsis, paralipsis, preterition - suggesting by deliberately concise treatment that much of significance is omitted paregmenon - juxtaposing words having a common derivation (as in `sense and sensibility') polysyndeton - using several conjunctions in close succession, especially where some might be omitted (as in `he ran and jumped and laughed for joy') prolepsis - anticipating and answering objections in advance wellerism - a comparison comprising a well-known quotation followed by a facetious sequel |