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synecdoche

[si-nek-duh-kee]
noun Rhetoric.
  1. 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.

Origin of synecdoche

1350–1400; < Medieval Latin < Greek synekdochḗ, equivalent to syn- syn- + ekdochḗ act of receiving from another, equivalent to ek- ec- + -dochē, noun derivative of déchesthai to receive
Related formssyn·ec·doch·ic [sin-ik-dok-ik] /ˌsɪn ɪkˈdɒk ɪk/, syn·ec·doch·i·cal, adjectivesyn·ec·doch·i·cal·ly, adverb
Can be confusedSchenectady synecdoche
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

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Historical Examples of synecdochically

British Dictionary definitions for synecdochically

synecdoche

noun
  1. 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 Formssynecdochic (ˌsɪnɛkˈdɒkɪk) or synecdochical, adjectivesynecdochically, adverb

Word 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
Word Origin and History for synecdochically

synecdoche

n.

late 14c., "part for whole or vice versa," from Medieval Latin synodoche, from Late Latin synecdoche, from Greek synekdokhe, literally "a receiving together or jointly," from synekdekhesthai "supply a thought or word, take with something else," from syn- "with" (see syn-) + ek "out" (see ex-) + dekhesthai "to receive," related to dokein "seem good" (see decent). Figure in which an attribute or adjunct is substituted for the thing meant ("head" for "cattle," etc.).

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper