Latin Rhetorical Devices

Front 1

allegory

Back 1

an extended metaphor (often w/ multiple points of contact)

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alliteration

Back 2

the repetition of sounds, usually of initial consonants or stressed vowels, for emphasis, musicality, or onomatopoeia

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analogy

Back 3

the comparison of one thing with another to which it is similar in some respect, usually used to explain the former (taking what is known to describe the unknown; informative in purpose, includes: metaphor, simile, allegory)

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anaphora

Back 4

the repetition of words or phrases at the beginning of successive clauses, often with asyndeton, for emphasis and emotional effect (same word, not necessarily the same case)

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anastrophe

Back 5

the reversal of normal word order, as with a preposition following its object, which tends to emphasize the word(s) placed earlier
(ex: vulgum inter)

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assonance

Back 6

the repetition of internal or final vowel sounds for musicality or onomatopoeia

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antistrophe

Back 7

the repetition of words or phrases at the end of successive clauses (and thus a counterpoint to anaphora); also sometimes called epistrophe

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antithesis

Back 8

opposition or contrast of words in parallel construction

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asyndeton

Back 9

the omission, from a series of words or phrases, of conjunctions where they would normally be expected, serving to emphasize the words in the series (punchy)

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chiasmus

Back 10

the arrangement of words, phrases, or clauses in an oppositional (ex: ABBA) order, having several possible purposes: 1. to emphasize some opposition of the elements; 2. to emphasize the first, last, or middle elements; 3. to draw the elements of the chiasmus closer together

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climax

Back 11

the arrangement of words, clauses, or sentences in order of increasing importance or emphasis

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conduplicatio

Back 12

the repetition of a word or words for emphasis or emotion; differs from anaphora (and antistrophe) in its ability to be placed anywhere in a given clause

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consonance

Back 13

the repetition of consonants a the beginning, middle, or end of words (thus overlapping with alliteration)-(counterpoint to assonance)

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ellipsis

Back 14

the omission of one or more words necessary to the sense of a clause but easily understood from the context (often, in Latin, a form of the verb sum)

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expletive

Back 15

the use of a word or short phrase, usually interrupting normal syntax, often for metrical reasons or to add emphasis to what precedes or follows
(ex: in fact..)

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euphemism

Back 16

the substitution of a non-offensive expression for one whose plainer meaning may be offensive

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hendiadys

Back 17

the use of two nouns connected by a conjunction, rather than by subordinating one to the other, to express a single complex idea

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homoiteleuton

Back 18

the recurrence of the same or similar word endings

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hyperbole

Back 19

self-conscious exaggeration
(ex: 1000 kisses, then 100)

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irony

Back 20

the use of language with a meaning opposite its literal meaning

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litotes

Back 21

a form of deliberate understatement in which a quality is described (and usually intensified) by negating its opposite
(ex: not bad)

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metaphor

Back 22

identification of one thing with another, making an implicit, figurative statement of comparison in order to show their similarities; it is distinguished from analogy by its use of overt identity to describe its two subjects, whereas an analogy allows for differences between its two subjects (more figurative; one equated w/ other)

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metonymy

Back 23

a type of imagery in which one word, generally a noun, is employed to suggest another with which it is closely related; this is rather common in epic style and allows the poet to avoid prosaic, commonplace words (something related)
(ex: White House; church)

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onomatopoeia

Back 24

the use of words whose sounds imitate their meaning or the meaning of the immediate context (could be several words in a series)

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oxymoron

Back 25

the juxtaposition of incongruent or contradictory words

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parallelism

Back 26

the juxtaposition of two or more equivalent grammatical (or syntactical) constructions, often to show the similarity of their subject matter

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personification

Back 27

a type of imagery by which human traits are attributed to non-human objects or abstract ideas
(ex: phaselus)

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pleonasm

Back 28

the use of more words than is usual or necessary, often in the form of repetition of the same idea in different words

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polyptoton

Back 29

the repetition of a given word (or group of words) using different endings

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prolepsis

Back 30

the description of a person or thing before it is logically appropriate

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polysyndeton

Back 31

a greater use of connective words than is usual or necessary, often to emphasize elements in a series

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rhetorical question

Back 32

a question whose answer is easily understood, often either yes or no, used as an implicit statement

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simile

Back 33

an explicit comparison between two objects (using such words as ut, velut, qualis, or similis), usually moving from something foreign to something more familiar; English forms a simile with "like" and "as" (tantus...quantus; tot...quot; tam...quam)

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synecdoche

Back 34

a subset of metonymy in which a part or characteristic of a whole represents the whole; conversely, the whole can, on occasion, represent its parts
(ex: head of cattle; US won gold)

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tmesis

Back 35

the separation of a compound into its constituent parts, often for metrical reasons
(ex: maladicta- mala dicta; infero- in fero)

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tricolon

Back 36

a series of three (or more) phrases or clauses in sequence; if they progress, whether in detail, length, or emotion, it is called an ascending tricolon

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zeugma

Back 37

the use of a word or phrase in conjunction with two others when it only logically applies to one of them, or when it applies to both of them, but with a different sense for each (words such as "hit" or "break")
(ex: he broke the record and his leg)

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rhetorical device

Back 38

a technique used by an author or speaker to evoke an emotional response in his audience

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figure of speech

Back 39

any form or expression that departs from literal use of language; it is commonly used to convey or add meaning or emotion to a description