Definition
Examples
Definition
Purpose
Definition
100
Inversion of the natural or usual word
What is Anastrophe
100
"The farmers in the valley grew potatoes, peanuts, and bored."
What is Zeugma
100
Repetition of initial or medial consonants or any vowel sounds in successive or closely associated syllables, especially stressed syllables.
What is Alliteration
100
To produce a hurried rhythm in the sentence
What is Asyndeton
100
Repetition of words, in successive clauses, in reverse grammatical order.
What is Antimetabole
200
When the parallel elements are similar not only in structure but also in length (Same number of words, sometimes even the same number of syllables)
What is Isocolon
200
"Sure I am of this, that you have only to endure to conquer."-Winston Churchill
What is Anastrophe
200
Repetition of the same word or group of words at the beginnings of successive clauses.
What is Anaphora
200
To produce a strong emotional effect
What is Anaphora
200
Asking a question, not for the purpose of eliciting an answer but for the purpose of asserting or denying something obiquely.
What is Erotema
300
juxtaposition of contrasting ideas, often in parallel structure
What is Antithesis
300
"Get your facts first, and then you can distort them as much as you please. (Facts are stubborn, but statistics are more pliable.)" (Mark Twain)
What is Parenthesis
300
Repetition of the same word or groups of words at the ends of successive clauses.
What is Epistrophe
300
To pronounce a rhythm but secure a special emphasis
What is Epistrophe
300
Asking a question and immediately answering it in order to demonstrate authority
What is Hypophora
400
Deliberate omission of a word or of words that are readily implied by the context
What is Ellipsis
400
“I said, ‘Who killed him?’ and he said ‘I don’t know who killed him, but he’s dead all right,’ and it was dark and there was water standing in the street and no lights or windows broke and boats all up in the town and trees blown down and everything all blown and I got a skiff and went out and found my boat where I had her inside Mango Key and she was right only she was full of water.” (Ernest Hemingway, After the Storm)
What is Polysyndeton
400
Repetition of the last word of one clause at the beginning of the following clause, often used to highlight a cause-effect relationship.
What is Anadiplosis
400
To highlight a cause and effect relationship
What is Anadiplosis
400
Asking a question in order to reproach or upbraid, rather than to elicit information
What is Epiplexis
500
Deliberate omission of conjunctions between a series of related clauses
What is Asyndeton
500
“If you fail to plan, you plan to fail.”
What is Antimetabole
500
Reversal of grammatical structures in successive phrases or clauses
What is Chiasmus
500
To reinforce antithesis
What is Chiasmus
500
More than one item in a sentence is governed by a single word, usually a verb
What is Zeugma
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