zeugma

zeug·ma  (zgm)

n.

1. Syllepsis.

2. A construction in which one word or phrase is understood to be related to two or more other words or phrases, while being grammatically consistent with only one of them, as with subject-verb agreement in She was upstairs, and her children downstairs.

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[Latin, from Greek, a joining, bond; see yeug- in Indo-European roots.]

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zeugma [ˈzjuːgmə]

n

(Literary & Literary Critical Terms) a figure of speech in which a word is used to modify or govern two or more words although appropriate to only one of them or making a different sense with each, as in the sentence Mr. Pickwick took his hat and his leave (Charles Dickens)

[via Latin from Greek: a yoking, from zeugnunai to yoke]

zeugmatic  [zjuːgˈmætɪk] adj

zeugmatically  adv

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zeugma

the use of a word grammatically related to two adjacent words, but inappropriate for one of them, as in “he loved both his wife and his wallet.” — zeugmatic, adj.

See also: Rhetoric and Rhetorical Devices

Thesaurus

Noun

1.

zeugma - use of a word to govern two or more words though appropriate to only one; "`Mr. Pickwick took his hat and his leave' is an example of zeugma" figure of speech, trope, image, figure - language used in a figurative or nonliteral sense syllepsis - use of a word to govern two or more words though agreeing in number or case etc. with only one

Translations

zeugma

n → Zeugma nt