Lang Schemes and Tropes

parallelism

similarity of structure in a pair or series of related words, phrases, or clauses

antithesis

juxtaposition of contrasting ideas or words (often parallel)

climax

the arrangement of words, phrases, or clauses in an order of increasing importance (often parallel)

inversion

the usual word order is rearranged, often for effect of emphasis or to maintain meter

parenthesis

insertion of a verbal unit that interrupts the normal flow of the sentence

apposition

juxtaposing two coordinating elements (often nouns), one of which defines, explains or modifies the other

ellipsis

omission of a word or of words which are implied by the context

asyndeton

omission of conjunctions between a series of related clauses

polysyndeton

use of many conjunctions

anaphora

repetition of the same word or words at the beginning of successive clauses

epistrophe

repetition of the same word or words at the end of successive clauses

epanalepsis

repetition at the end of a clause of the word or words that occurred at the beginning

anadiplosis

repetition of the last word or phrase from one clause at the beginning of the next clause

chiasmus

repetition of grammatical structure in inverted order

antimetabole

repetition of words, in successive clauses, in reverse grammatical order

pun

making a play on words using words that are written similarly but have different meanings

synecdoche

figure of speech; a part stands for the whole or vice versa

metonymy

reference to something by naming something with which it is closely associated

zeugma

one verb controls 2+ objects that have different relations to the verb

personification

reference to inanimate things are though they had human traits

apostrophe

addressing an absent, personified thing directly

verbal irony

speaking to imply the contrary of what is said

hyperbole

exaggeration for emphasis

understatement

making something seem less important for emphasis or politeness

rhetorical question

asking a question not to obtain the answer

onomatopoeia

words whose sound echoes the sense

paradox

contradiction that reveals truth

oxymoron

placing two contradictory terms adjacent to each other