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Questions tagged [figures-of-speech]

A figure of speech is figurative language in the form of a single word or phrase.

A figure of speech is figurative language in the form of a single word or phrase. It can be a special repetition, arrangement or omission of words with literal meaning, or a phrase with a specialized meaning not based on the literal meaning of the words. There are mainly five figures of speech: simile, metaphor, hyperbole, personification and synecdoche. Figures of speech often provide emphasis, freshness of expression, or clarity. However, clarity may also suffer from their use, as any figure of speech introduces an ambiguity between literal and figurative interpretation. A figure of speech is sometimes called a rhetorical figure or a locution.

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A figure of speech to illustrate the irreversibility of an action

I'm looking for a good figure of speech to suggest that something is irreversible. It would be used in the following context: "I'm sorry, dear, but you said you hate her loud and clear, and there is nothing you can do about it now. …
Centaurus
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99% of people would do x

99% of people, 99% of things, events, dogs, whatever. 99% Recently I used what is to me as a Brit a pretty common figure of speech, saying "99% of people would x", meaning simply that the vast majority of people would x. However this seemed to…
the other one
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Some, others and again others?

If I want to add a third option to the construct "Some..., others", what is the best way to put it? Some, others and again others? So: Some people like apples, others like oranges and again others enjoy bananas. This sounds a bit off, or not?
Vincent
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Name for using foreign language (especially Latin) to convey a sense of dignity and wisdom

There is a common figure of speech in English where we would use an epigram in a foreign language, especially Latin or French, to convey a particular sense of dignity or wisdom to the phrase. Some examples that I have recently encountered: C'est la…
Fraser Orr
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Change is the only constant – antithesis or oxymoron?

Change is the only constant – Isaac Asimov Can the above quote be called an example of antithesis or that of oxymoron, or neither of these? I am confused because both antithesis and oxymoron have a contrasting effect. Antithesis: A rhetorical…
user32480
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Can a single metaphor be 'mixed'?

M-W has the following definition for mixed metaphor: a figure of speech combining inconsistent or incongruous metaphors Hence a requirement is that a 'mixed metaphor' contains more than one metaphor. Eric Lippert comments in another thread:…
Edwin Ashworth
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Is 'to gain an advantage' a pleonasm?

The definition of "advantage" is roughly "something positive". Definitions for "to gain" are rather varied, but usually mean "to win something" with a positive connotation. With this in mind, is "to gain an advantage" a pleonasm or not? Does…
Mien
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A figure of speech as a replacement of 'evidence' or 'proof'

I'm not sure if it's an idiom, but I think it's like a person's name, that implies 'proof of guilt', or 'evidence to prove one is guilty'. I've heard it on many police shows. "We have her ______, it's all we need to prove she did it. It would be a…
JaredWolf
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What's the term for when two related words are used in a different sense, often one literally and one metaphorically?

Apologies for the title, I found it difficult to describe. If I say he took his hat and his leave I believe that is called syllepsis or zeugma. Another example would be he bolted his food, the door, and down the street. But is there a term for an…
Joe Fawcett
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Simile or idiom, " hung LIKE a _____"

I do not understand the expression: hung like a horse Is it an idiom or a simile? Please explain why it is one over the other.
Rrr Ppp
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Is the phrase "a brute of a husband" a figure of speech?

I came across the phrase "A BRUTE OF A HUSBAND". I would normally use 'a brute husband', and this construction seems interesting to me. However, I don't know how to search for more phrases like this, because if I write down "of a" in google I would…
Ziad El Hachem
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What figure of speech is this? "Homes to the homeless, jobs to the jobless"

What figure of speech is this? Homes to the homeless, jobs to the jobless
Joel Törnqvist
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What is this figure of speech called?

Is 'rootless weeds' an example of a figure of speech?If it is,what is it called? It is from the poem'An Elementary School Classroom In A Slum ' (by Stephen Spender). 'Far far from gusty waves these children's faces. Like rootless weeds, the hair…
user224020
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Waterproof shod?

In Norwegian we have a saying, vanntette skodd, that directly translated to English would be waterproof shod. It means that there is a segregation between two subjects such that not even water passes through. I want to use this in a society…
user7919
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What figure of speech is this, "assaulted by a haircut"?

"That guy is assaulting us with that haircut". There's some hyperbole in there, but its definitely a substitution of some sort.
007
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