Classical Rhetorical Figures

Question 1

What is Alliteration?

Answer 1

Repetition of the same sound beginning several words in sequence.

Example: “Let us go forth to lead the land we love” - J.F. Kennedy, Inaugural

Question 2

What is Anacoluthon?

Answer 2

Lack of grammatical sequence; a change in the grammatical construction within the same sentence.

Example: “That all the world shall—I will do such things,” – Shakespeare, King Lear

Question 3

Define Anadiplosis.

Answer 3

The rhetorical repetition of one or several words; specifically, repetition of a word that ends one clause at the beginning of the next.

Example: “Men in great place are thrice servants…” - Francis Bacon

Question 4

What is Anaphora?

Answer 4

The repetition of a word or phrase at the beginning of successive phrases, clauses or lines.

Example: “We shall not flag or fail…” - Sir Winston Churchill

Question 5

What does Anastrophe refer to?

Answer 5

Transposition of normal word order; often found in Latin.

Example: “One swallow does not a summer make.” – Aristotle

Question 6

What is Antistrophe?

Answer 6

Repetition of the same word or phrase at the end of successive clauses.

Example: “In 1931, ten years ago, Japan invaded Manchukuo – without warning…” - Franklin D. Roosevelt

Question 7

What is Antithesis?

Answer 7

Opposition, or contrast of ideas or words in a balanced or parallel construction.

Example: “Not that I loved Caesar less, but that I loved Rome more.” - Shakespeare

Question 8

Define Aporia.

Answer 8

Expression of doubt (often feigned) by which a speaker appears uncertain.

Example: “Nobody ever helps me into carriages, or over mud-puddle ‘Ain’t I a woman?’” - Sojourner Truth

Question 9

What is Aposiopesis?

Answer 9

A form of ellipse by which a speaker comes to an abrupt halt, seemingly overcome by passion.

Example: “That all the world shall– I will do such things-” – Shakespeare

Question 10

What does Apostrophe signify?

Answer 10

A sudden turn from the general audience to address a specific group or person.

Example: “Judge, O you gods, how dearly Caesar loved him.” - Shakespeare

Question 11

What is Archaism?

Answer 11

Use of an older or obsolete form.

Example: “Pipit sate upright in her chair…” - T. S. Eliot

Question 12

Define Assonance.

Answer 12

Repetition of the same sound in words close to each other.

Example: “Thy kingdom come, thy will be done” - The Lord’s Prayer

Question 13

What is Asyndeton?

Answer 13

Lack of conjunctions between coordinate phrases, clauses, or words.

Example: “We shall pay any price, bear any burden…” - J.F. Kennedy

Question 14

What does Brachylogy refer to?

Answer 14

A general term for abbreviated or condensed expression.

Example: “Afternoon” (without “good”)

Question 15

What is Cacophony?

Answer 15

Harsh joining of sounds.

Example: “We want no parlay with you and your grisly gang…” - Sir Winston Churchill

Question 16

Define Catachresis.

Answer 16

A harsh metaphor involving the use of a word beyond its strict sphere.

Example: “A man that studies revenge keeps his own wounds green…” - Francis Bacon

Question 17

What is Chiasmus?

Answer 17

Two corresponding pairs arranged in inverted order.

Example: “Ask not what your country can do for you…” - J.F. Kennedy

Question 18

Define Climax in rhetoric.

Answer 18

Arrangement of words, phrases, or clauses in an order of ascending power.

Example: “One equal temper of heroic hearts…” - Tennyson

Question 19

What is Euphemism?

Answer 19

Substitution of an agreeable expression for one whose plainer meaning might be harsh.

Example: “Remember me when I am gone far away…” - Christina Rossetti

Question 20

Define Hendiadys.

Answer 20

Use of two words connected by a conjunction, to express a single complex idea.

Example: “It sure is nice and cool today!”

Question 21

What is Hypallage?

Answer 21

Transferred epithet; grammatical agreement of a word with another word which it does not logically qualify.

Example: “His coward lips did from their colour fly.” - Cassius

Question 22

What does Hyperbaton refer to?

Answer 22

Separation of words which belong together, often to emphasize the first of the separated words.

Example: “Some rise by sin, and some by virtue fall…” - Shakespeare

Question 23

Define Hyperbole.

Answer 23

Exaggeration for emphasis or for rhetorical effect.

Example: “My vegetable love should grow…” - Andrew Marvell

Question 24

What is Hysteron Proteron?

Answer 24

Inversion of the natural sequence of events, often to stress the more important event.

Example: “Put on your shoes and socks!”

Question 25

What does Irony signify?

Answer 25

Expression of something contrary to the intended meaning; the words say one thing but mean another. ## Footnote Example: “Yet Brutus says he was ambitious…” - Shakespeare

Question 26

Define Litotes.

Answer 26

Understatement, for intensification, by denying the contrary of the thing being affirmed. ## Footnote Example: “War is not healthy for children and other living things.”

Question 27

What is Metaphor?

Answer 27

Implied comparison achieved through a figurative use of words. ## Footnote Example: “Life's but a walking shadow…” - Shakespeare

Question 28

Define Metonymy.

Answer 28

Substitution of one word for another which it suggests. ## Footnote Example: “The pen is mightier than the sword.”

Question 29

What is Onomatopoeia?

Answer 29

Use of words to imitate natural sounds. ## Footnote Example: “He could feel his heart pounding…” - Ernest Hemingway

Question 30

Define Oxymoron.

Answer 30

Apparent paradox achieved by juxtaposition of contradictory words. ## Footnote Example: “darkness visible” - John Milton

Question 31

What is Paradox?

Answer 31

An assertion seemingly opposed to common sense, but may yet have some truth. ## Footnote Example: “What a pity that youth must be wasted on the young.” - George Bernard Shaw

Question 32

What does Paraprosdokian mean?

Answer 32

Surprise or unexpected ending of a phrase or series. ## Footnote Example: “For every complex problem, there is an answer that is short, simple—and wrong.” - H.L Mencken

Question 33

Define Paronomasia.

Answer 33

Use of similar sounding words; often etymological word-play. ## Footnote Example: “Ask for me tomorrow and you shall find me a grave man.” - Shakespeare

Question 34

What is Personification?

Answer 34

Attribution of personality to an impersonal thing. ## Footnote Example: “England expects every man to do his duty.” - Lord Nelson

Question 35

Define Pleonasm.

Answer 35

Use of superfluous or redundant words, often enriching the thought. ## Footnote Example: “No one, rich or poor, will be excepted.”

Question 36

What is Polysyndeton?

Answer 36

Repetition of conjunctions in a series of coordinate words, phrases, or clauses. ## Footnote Example: “I said, 'Who killed him?' and he said, 'I don't know who killed him but he's dead all right...'” - Hemingway

Question 37

What does Praeteritio mean?

Answer 37

Pretended omission for rhetorical effect. ## Footnote Example: “That part of our history detailing the military achievements…” - Thucydides

Question 38

Define Prolepsis.

Answer 38

Anticipation of the result of the action of a verb; positioning of a relative clause before its antecedent. ## Footnote Example: “Consider the lilies of the field how they grow.”

Question 39

What is Simile?

Answer 39

An explicit comparison between two things using 'like' or 'as'. ## Footnote Example: “My love is as a fever, longing still…” - Shakespeare

Question 40

Define Syllepsis.

Answer 40

Use of a word with two others, with each understood differently. ## Footnote Example: “She blew my nose and then she blew my mind.” - Mick Jagger

Question 41

What is Synchysis?

Answer 41

Interlocked word order; changing the structure of a sentence to create elaborate passages. ## Footnote Example: “When earthquakes swallow, or when tempests sweep…”

Question 42

What is the definition of a noun?

Answer 42

A part of speech that represents a person, place, thing, or idea.

Question 43

What does the phrase 'She blew my nose and then she blew my mind' illustrate?

Answer 43

The use of a noun with different meanings.

Question 44

Who said, 'We must all hang together or assuredly we will all hang separately'?

Answer 44

Benjamin Franklin.

Question 45

What resources does Margaret Atwood suggest you may need?

Answer 45

A thesaurus, a rudimentary grammar book, and a grip on reality.

Question 46

Define synchysis.

Answer 46

Interlocked word order; changing the structure of a sentence to create elaborate passages.

Question 47

Give an example of synchysis.

Answer 47

'When earthquakes swallow, or when tempests sweep, Towns to one grave, whole nations to the deep' – Alexander Pope.

Question 48

What is synecdoche?

Answer 48

Understanding one thing with another; the use of a part for the whole, or the whole for the part.

Question 49

Provide an example of synecdoche.

Answer 49

'Give us this day our daily bread' - Matthew 6.

Question 50

What is synesis?

Answer 50

The agreement of words according to logic, and not by grammatical form.

Question 51

Define tautology.

Answer 51

Repetition of an idea in a different word, phrase, or sentence.

Question 52

Provide an example of tautology.

Answer 52

'With malice toward none, with charity for all.' - Lincoln.

Question 53

What is zeugma?

Answer 53

Two different words linked to a verb or an adjective which is strictly appropriate to only one of them.