hendiadys

[ hen-dahy-uh-dis ]
/ hɛnˈdaɪ ə dɪs /

noun Rhetoric.

a figure in which a complex idea is expressed by two words connected by a copulative conjunction: “to look with eyes and envy” instead of “with envious eyes.”

Origin of hendiadys

1580–90; < Medieval Latin; alteration of Greek phrase hèn dià dyoîn one through two, one by means of two

Words nearby hendiadys

hendecasyllabic, hendecasyllable, henderson, hendersonula toruloidea, hendersonville, hendiadys, hendon, hendra, hendrick, hendricks, hendrix

Example sentences from the Web for hendiadys

  • A hendiadys for 'Go drink all the mind-purging hellebore that grows in Anticyra'.

    The Last Poems of Ovid |Ovid

  • This line is a type of hendiadys, the first half of the line being redefined by the second.

    The Last Poems of Ovid |Ovid

  • Real instances of hendiadys are much rarer than is generally supposed.

    Cato Maior de Senectute |Marcus Tullius Cicero

British Dictionary definitions for hendiadys

hendiadys
/ (hɛnˈdaɪədɪs) /

noun

a rhetorical device by which two nouns joined by a conjunction, usually and, are used instead of a noun and a modifier, as in to run with fear and haste instead of to run with fearful haste

Word Origin for hendiadys

C16: from Medieval Latin, changed from Greek phrase hen dia duoin, literally: one through two