Rhetorical Devices

Alliteration

Alliteration

the rhetorical contrast of ideas by means of parallel arrangements of words, clauses, or sentences

Analogy

a comparison between two things intended to show how they are alike

Antithesis

a device in which two opposite ideas are put together in a contrasting effect

Keep your friends close; keep your enemies closer.

Asyndeton

omission of the conjunctions that ordinarily join coordinate words or clauses

"I came; I saw; I conquered."

Chiasmus

an inverted relationship between the syntactic elements of parallel phrases

I may be as bad as the worst, but, thank God, compared to the best I am just as good

Euphemism

the use of a word or phrase that is less expressive or direct but considered less distasteful or offensive than another

"Passed away" instead of "died"

Irony

the use of words to express something other than and especially the opposite of the literal meaning

A pilot has a fear of heights.

Jargon

the language, especially the vocabulary, peculiar to a particular trade, profession or group

Juxtaposition

a device in which normally unassociated ideas, words, or phrases are placed next to one another, often creating an effect of surprise and wit

Night and day

Metonymy

a figure of speech consisting of the use of the name of one thing for another of which it is an attribute or with which is associated

Paradox

A statement containing contradictory elements that may be illogical, impossible or absurd but which actually have a coherent meaning that reveals a hidden truth.

The enemy of my enemy is my friend

Parallelism

a grammatical or structural arrangement of words, phrases, sentences or paragraphs so that elements of equal importance are equally developed and similarly phrased

Polysyndeton

he deliberate use of many conjunctions for special emphasis — to highlight quantity or mass of detail or to create a flowing, continuous sentence pattern; it slows the pace of the sentence

Rhetorical Fragment

a sentence fragment used deliberately for a persuasive purpose or to create a desired effect

"Another new study to be presented by U.S. Navy researchers later this week warns it could happen in as little as seven years. Seven years from now."

Rhetorical Shift

a turn, a change or a movement in a text resulting from an epiphany, realization or insight gained by the speaker or writer

Synecdoche

a figure of speech by which a part is put for the whole

Boots as in soldiers