anaphora

[ uh-naf-er-uh ]

noun

1. Also called epanaphora. Rhetoric. repetition of a word or words at the beginning of two or more successive verses, clauses, or sentences. Compare epistrophe ( def 1 ), symploce.
2. Grammar. the use of a word as a regular grammatical substitute for a preceding word or group of words, as the use of it and do in I know it and he does too. Compare cataphora.
3. Sometimes Anaphora. Eastern Church.
   1. the prayer of oblation and consecration in the Divine Liturgy during which the Eucharistic elements are offered.
   2. the part of the ceremony during which the Eucharistic elements are offered as an oblation.

anaphora

/ əˈnæfərə /

noun

1. grammar the use of a word such as a pronoun that has the same reference as a word previously used in the same discourse. In the sentence John wrote the essay in the library but Peter did it at home, both did and it are examples of anaphora Compare cataphora exophoric
2. rhetoric the repetition of a word or phrase at the beginning of successive clauses

Other Words From

• a·napho·ral adjective
• prea·napho·ral adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of anaphora¹

First recorded in 1580–90; from Late Latin, from Greek: “a bringing back, repeating,” equivalent to ana- ana- + -phora, akin to phérein “to carry, bring”; -phore, -phorous

Word History and Origins

Origin of anaphora¹

C16: via Latin from Greek: repetition, from anapherein, from ana- + pherein to bear

Example Sentences

The study pinpointed how well people process and reproduce sentences involving "anaphora."

From Science Daily

The poetry seems to perform hypnosis, the found rhymes and assonance and anaphora enacting an enchantment, a bewitchery; it seems to be giving subconscious advice.

From New York Times

Throughout the book, Evans uses anaphora in conjunction with evocative imagery.

From Washington Post

In rhetoric, the name for the repetition of an opening phrase is anaphora, and if you Google the word, several sites direct you to Marin Luther King’s “I Have a Dream” speech.

From The Guardian

Mueller’s verbal dryness, amid the juicy statements, florid grandstanding, and indignant anaphora of his questioners, was like the rustling pages of an old book.

From The New Yorker