antanaclasis

[ ant-an-uh-klas-is ]
/ ˌænt æn əˈklæs ɪs /

noun Rhetoric.

a form of speech in which a key word is repeated and used in a different, and sometimes contrary, way for a play on words, as in The craft of a politician is to appear before the public without craft.

Origin of antanaclasis

1640–50; < Greek antanáklasis literally, echo, reflection, equivalent to ant- ant- + ana- ana- + klásis a breaking, bending (see -clase, -clasis)

Words nearby antanaclasis

antalgic, antalgic gait, antalkali, antalkaline, antalya, antanaclasis, antananarivo, antapex, antaranga, antarctic, antarctic archipelago

Example sentences from the Web for antanaclasis

  • In Cicero's treatise on Oratory, a variety of instances of the antanaclasis are quoted, and highly praised by him for their wit.

    The Punster's Pocket-book |Charles Molloy Westmacott