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View synonyms for synecdoche

synecdoche

[si-nek-duh-kee]

noun

Rhetoric.
  1. a figure of speech in which a part is used for the whole or the whole for a part, the special for the general or the general for the special, as in ten sail for ten ships or a Croesus for a rich man.



synecdoche

/ sɪnˈɛkdəkɪ, ˌsɪnɛkˈdɒkɪk /

noun

  1. a figure of speech in which a part is substituted for a whole or a whole for a part, as in 50 head of cattle for 50 cows, or the army for a soldier

“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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Other Word Forms

  • synecdochic adjective
  • synecdochical adjective
  • synecdochically adverb
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Word History and Origins

Origin of synecdoche1

1350–1400; < Medieval Latin < Greek synekdochḗ, equivalent to syn- syn- + ekdochḗ act of receiving from another, equivalent to ek- ec- + -dochē, noun derivative of déchesthai to receive
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Word History and Origins

Origin of synecdoche1

C14: via Latin from Greek sunekdokhē, from syn- + ekdokhē interpretation, from dekhesthai to accept
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Compare Meanings

How does synecdoche compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

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Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Some of the sentences that adorn them are barely legible because of the fabric’s creases, but one of them, a quote from a playbill interview with Castellucci, describes Huppert as “the synecdoche of theater.”

In Mangold’s hands, parts become wholes and the exhibition a master class in synecdoche: the tree is the forest; the painter a human representative negotiating with the natural world.

In Darlington’s Devon neighborhood, the synecdoche for global habitat destruction is the arrival of a sign in a soon-to-be-former farm field: “Site Acquired for Development.”

And I'm far from the only one who sees the destruction of Twitter under Musk as a synecdoche for what's awaiting the entire country if Republicans win in the midterms.

From Salon

To many Americans, Alabama is a synecdoche for the worst of Southern reaction.

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synesynechia