We somehow got interested in antagonyms with the word "table," which can mean two opposite things. I tried to think of other examples and ended up making a list of other, well, let's say "onyms" since most end with that suffix, a Greek root that means "word" or "name."
rhetorical device
definition
A pronounceable word formed from each of the first letters of a descriptive phrase. An acronym is actually a type of abbreviation.
example
RADAR = Radio Detecting/Detection And Ranging
rhetorical device
definition
Words or phrases that can be read in more than one way or from more than a single vantage point, most commonly right-side-up and upside-down.
example
rhetorical device
anaphora
definition
The repetition of a word or phrase at the beginning of successive phrases, clauses or lines.
example
We shall not flag or fail. We shall go on to the end. We shall fight in France, we shall
fight on the seas and oceans, we shall fight with growing confidence and growing strength in the air,
we shall defend our island, whatever the cost may be, we shall fight on the beaches, we shall fight on
the landing grounds, we shall fight in the fields and in the streets, we shall fight in the hills. We
shall never surrender.
—Winston Churchill
rhetorical device
anatonym
definition
An anatonym refers to a part of the body that is used as a verb
example
toe the line, face the music, eye the target
rhetorical device
definition
A single word that has meanings that contradict each other, also known as "contronyms."
example
word : apparent
meaning : not clear or certain
example : For now, he is the apparent winner of the contest.
meaning : obvious
example : The solution to the problem was apparent to all.
rhetorical device
antonym
definition
A word having a meaning opposite to that of another word
example
The word wet is an antonym of the word dry.
rhetorical device
aptronym
definition
A name that's especially suited to the profession of its owner.
example
Sally Ride, the astronaut.
rhetorical device
asyndeton
definition
A Lack of conjunctions between coordinate phrases, clauses, or words.
example
We shall pay any price, bear any burden, meet any hardships, support any friend, oppose
any foe to assure the survival and the success of liberty.
—J. F. Kennedy, Inaugural
But, in a larger sense, we cannot dedicate, we cannot consecrate, we cannot hallow this ground.
—Abraham Lincoln, Gettysburg Address
rhetorical device
backronym
definition
[portmanteau of back + acronym] A word interpreted as an acronym that was not originally so intended. This is a special case of what linguists call 'back formation.'
example
rhetorical device
capitonym
definition
A word that takes on a new meaning when capitalized.
example
word : polish
pronunciation : pol-ish
definition : to buff clean and shiny
word : Polish
pronunciation : Polish
definition : someone from Poland
rhetorical device
charactonym
definition
Aname especially for a fictional character that suggests a distinctive trait of the character.
example
Charles Dickens' Scrooge is a miser.
rhetorical device
chiasmus
definition
Two corresponding pairs arranged not in parallels (a-b-a-b) but in inverted order (a-b-b-a); from shape of the Greek letter chi (X).
example
Those gallant men will remain often in my thoughts and in my prayers always.
—Gen. Douglas MacArthur
rhetorical device
epanalepsis
definition
Repeats the beginning word of a clause or sentence at the end. The beginning and the end are the two positions of strongest emphasis in a sentence, so by having the same word in both places, you call special attention to it.
example
Water alone dug this giant canyon; yes, just plain water.
To report that your committee is still investigating the matter is to tell me that you have nothing to report.
rhetorical device
epizeuxis
definition
Repetition of one word (for emphasis).
example
The best way to describe this portion of South America is lush, lush, lush.
What do you see? Wires, wires, everywhere wires.
rhetorical device
definition
Substitution of an agreeable or at least non-offensive expression for one whose plainer meaning might be harsh or unpleasant.
example
In Shakespeare's King Richard II Richard inquires after John of Gaunt:
King Richard: What says he?
Northumberland: Nay, nothing, all is said.
His tongue is now a stringless instrument [meaning "he died"]
—Richard II 2.1.147-149
rhetorical device
definition
Words that are spelled identically but have different meanings when pronounced differently.
example
word : lead
promounciation : LEED
meaning : to guide
promounciation : LED
meaning : a metallic element
rhetorical device
definition
Words that have identical spellings but different pronunciations and different meanings.
example
word : attribute
pronunciation : a-TRIB-ewt
definition : regard as a cause
pronunciation : AT-ri-bewt
definition : characteristic feature
word : perfect
pronunciation : PUR-fekt
definition : the best possible
pronunciation : pur-FEKT
definition : to make better
word : resent
pronunciation : ree-ZENT
definition : be indignant
pronunciation : REE-SENT
definition : sent again
rhetorical device
definition
Words that are pronounced the same, but are spelled differently, and that have different meanings.
example
word : slay
definition : kill
word : sleigh
definition : snow carriage
rhetorical device
metanoia
definition
Qualifies a statement by recalling it (or part of it) and expressing it in a better, milder, or stronger way. A negative is often used to do the recalling.
example
Fido was the friendliest of all St. Bernards, nay of all dogs.
The chief thing to look for in impact sockets is hardness; no, not so much hardness as resistance to shock and shattering.
And if I am still far from the goal, the fault is my own for not paying heed to the
reminders—nay,
the virtual directions—which I have had from above.
—Marcus Aurelius
rhetorical device
metonymy
definition
Substitution of one word for another which it suggests.
example
He is a man of the cloth.
The pen is mightier than the sword.
rhetorical device
paradox
definition
An assertion seemingly opposed to common sense, but that may yet have some truth in it.
example
What a pity that youth must be wasted on the young.
—George Bernard Shaw
rhetorical device
pleonasm
definition
Use of superfluous or redundant words, often enriching the thought.
example
No one, rich or poor, will be excepted.
Ears pierced while you wait!
I have seen no stranger sight since I was born.
rhetorical device
pseudonym
definition
A fictitious name, especially a pen name.
example
Samuel Clemens wrote under the pseudonym Mark Twain. Author O. Henry was named William Sidney Porter.
rhetorical device
syllepsis
definition
Use of a word with two others, with each of which it is understood differently.
example
We must all hang together or assuredly we will all hang
separately.
—Benjamin Franklin
rhetorical device
synonym
definition
A word having the same or nearly the same meaning as another word or other words.
example
All languages tend to clear themselves of synonyms as
intellectual culture advances, the superfluous words being taken up and
appropriated by new shades and combinations of thought evolved in the progress
of society.
—De Quincey
His name has thus become, throughout all civilized
countries, a synonym for probity and philanthropy.
—Macaulay
rhetorical device
synonymia
definition
In general, the use of several synonyms together to amplify or explain a given subject or term. A kind of repetition that adds force. Synonymia often occurs in parallel fashion.
example
The tribune Murellus taunts the Roman populace in Shakespeare's Julius Caesar for their fickleness, calling the people several different pejorative names:
You blocks, you stones, you worse
than senseless things!
—Julius Caesar 3.2
rhetorical device
toponym
definition
A place name or word that began as the name of a place.
example
word : hamburger
derivation : a sandwich named after Hamburg,
Germany
word : afghan
derivation : a soft blanket from Afghanistan
references
(and other sites that English majors might appreciate)
Banished Word List — Words and phrases that we could stand to never hear again.Engrish — Features bad grammar and spelling used in Japanese-English products and signs. Takes a while to load, but is worth the wait.
The Forest of Rhetoric — A guide to the terms of classical and renaissance rhetoric by Dr. Gideon Burton of Brigham Young University.
Gallery of Misused Quotation Marks — A "large" sampling of items "submitted" by English majors that feature quotation marks used in all the "wrong" places.Glossary of Rhetorical Terms with Examples — A list of terms handed down from one English major to another. And now it's yours.
Linguistic Phenomena/Devices — This is a list of some of the lesser known linguistic phenomena and devices used in English writing. You actually know what most of these are, you just didn't know what they were called.Wombat File Dictionary — A list of words recently added and removed from a children's dictionary.
The Word Detective — The Word Detective on the Web is the online version of The Word Detective, a newspaper column answering readers' questions about words and language.
Word Play — A huge list of sites "that have fun with words."
Words about Words — a good list, although a little self-important : "We have coined the word nymonymtm ( a word about words) , plural nymonyms to describe words about words."
Yahooligans — The Secret of Onym. A copycat page.