This shows grade level based on the word's complexity.
synecdoche
[ si-nek-duh-kee ]
/ sɪˈnɛk də ki /
Save This Word!
This shows grade level based on the word's complexity.
noun Rhetoric.
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.
COMPARE COMMONLY CONFUSED WORDS
These are smilar words, and share related meanings, but their uses are very different. Click on the buttons to learn more about these commonly confused words.
QUIZ
QUIZ YOURSELF ON AFFECT VS. EFFECT!
In effect, this quiz will prove whether or not you have the skills to know the difference between “affect” and “effect.”
Question 1 of 7
The rainy weather could not ________ my elated spirits on my graduation day.
Meet Grammar CoachImprove Your Writing
Origin of synecdoche
OTHER WORDS FROM synecdoche
syn·ec·doch·ic [sin-ik-dok-ik], /ˌsɪn ɪkˈdɒk ɪk/, syn·ec·doch·i·cal, adjectivesyn·ec·doch·i·cal·ly, adverbWORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH synecdoche
Schenectady, synecdocheWords nearby synecdoche
syndication, syndiotactic, syndrome, syndrome X, syne, synecdoche, synechia, synechiotomy, synechism, synecious, synecology
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022
How to use synecdoche in a sentence
British Dictionary definitions for synecdoche
synecdoche
/ (sɪnˈɛkdəkɪ) /
noun
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
Derived forms of synecdoche
synecdochic (ˌsɪnɛkˈdɒkɪk) or synecdochical, adjectivesynecdochically, adverbWord Origin for synecdoche
C14: via Latin from Greek sunekdokhē, from syn- + ekdokhē interpretation, from dekhesthai to accept
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