anacoluthon
English
Alternative forms
- anacolouthon
Etymology
From Late Latin anacolūthon, from Ancient Greek ἀνακόλουθον (anakólouthon, “without sequence, anomalous [of inflections or grammatical constructions]”), from ἀ(ν)- (a(n)-, “un-”) + ἀκόλουθος (akólouthos, “following”).
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /ænəkəˈluːθɒn/
Noun
anacoluthon (plural anacolutha or anacoluthons)
| Examples (intentional use of inconsistent grammatical structure) |
|---|
You better not or, what do you think will happen? |
- (grammar) A sentence or clause that is grammatically inconsistent, especially with respect to the type of clausal or phrasal complement for the initial clause.
- 1835, Moses Stuart, A Treatise on the Syntax of the New Testament Dialect: With an Appendix, Containing a Dissertation on the Greek Article, Edinburgh: T. Clarke, OCLC 747776407, page 249:
- Another species of anacoluthon is when, after the sentence is begun with a participle, the construction passes over into a finite verb, where we should naturally expect the participial construction to be continued.
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- (rhetoric) Intentional use of such a structure.
- 1874, James Boyd, Elements of English Composition, Grammatical, Rhetorical, Logical, and Practical; Prepared for Academies and Schools, New York: A.S. Barnes, OCLC 18937532, page 281:
- Anacoluthon, though a grammatical defect, is a rhetorical beauty, if naturally produced or imitated; as, "If thou art he—but oh! how fallen!"
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Hyponyms
- anapodoton
- nominativus pendens
Translations
intentional rhetorical structure
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See also
References
- “anacoluthon” in Webster’s New Collegiate Dictionary: Based on Webster’s Third New International Dictionary, 8th edition, Springfield, Mass.: G[eorge] & C[harles] Merriam, 1973 (1974 printing), OCLC 299192187.
- Silva Rhetoricae
Latin
Etymology
From Ancient Greek ἀνακόλουθον (anakólouthon, “without sequence, anomalous [of inflections or grammatical constructions]”), from ἀ- (a-, “not”) + ἀκόλουθος (akólouthos, “following”).
Pronunciation
- (Classical) IPA(key): /a.na.koˈluː.tʰon/, [a.na.kɔˈɫuː.tʰɔn]
Noun
anacolūthon n (genitive anacolūthī); second declension
- anacoluthon
Inflection
Second declension, Greek type.
| Case | Singular | Plural |
|---|---|---|
| Nominative | anacolūthon | anacolūtha |
| Genitive | anacolūthī | anacolūthōrum |
| Dative | anacolūthō | anacolūthīs |
| Accusative | anacolūthon | anacolūtha |
| Ablative | anacolūthō | anacolūthīs |
| Vocative | anacolūthon | anacolūtha |
References
- “anacoluthon” in Webster’s New Collegiate Dictionary: Based on Webster’s Third New International Dictionary, 8th edition, Springfield, Mass.: G[eorge] & C[harles] Merriam, 1973 (1974 printing), OCLC 299192187.