Everything about Perissologia totally explained
Circumlocution (also called
periphrasis,
circumduction,
circumvolution,
periphrase, or
ambage) is an ambiguous or roundabout
figure of speech. In its most basic form, circumlocution is using many words (such as "a tool used for cutting things such as paper and hair") to describe something simple ("
scissors"). In this sense, the vast majority of definitions found in dictionaries are circumlocutory.
Circumlocution is often used by
aphasics and people learning a new language, where in the absence of a word (such as "abuelo" [grandfather]) the subject can simply be described ("el padre de su padre" [thefather of one's father]). It is also used frequently in
Basic English, a
constructed dialect of non-regional English.
Circumlocution has numerous other uses, under whose circumstances other terms are used.
Amphilogism
Amphilogism (also called
amphilogy) is a form a circumlocutory speech used to avoid telling something that might otherwise harm you. For example, a gay employee might use amphilogistic language (for example, the "
pronoun game") to talk about his partner without
outing himself. For example, instead of saying "He made dinner for me last night", an amphilogistic statement would be "Dinner was already made for me last night".
Cledonism
Cledonism is the use of circumlocution to avoid saying unlucky words. For example, calling the
devil "Old Nick" or saying "
baker's dozen" instead of
thirteen. The Roman god
Orcus was referred to as "
Pluto", "the rich one", in
Latin.
Equivocation
Equivocation is the use of circumlocution to deceive others without blatantly lying. For example, if a mother asks her child to clean a
throw rug, and the child replies that he'll "hang the rug and beat it" instead of saying he'll "clean it", he could mean that he'll forget about the rug (hang it) and quickly leave (beat it).
Euphemism
Euphemism is the use of circumlocution to avoid saying offensive words. Euphemism, however, is only sometimes circumlocutory. For example, "Holy mother of
Jesus!" is a circumlocution of "
Mary!", but "
heck", while still euphemistic, isn't a circumlocution of "
hell".
Further Information
Get more info on 'Perissologia'.
|
External Link Exchanges
Do you know how hard it is to get a link from a large encyclopaedia? Well we're different and will prove it. To get a link from us just add the following HTML to your site on a relevant page:
<a href="http://circumlocution.totallyexplained.com">Circumlocution Totally Explained</a>
Then simply click through this link from your web page. Our crawlers will verify your link, extract the title of your web page and instantly add a link back to it. If you like you can remove the words Totally Explained and embed the link in article text.
As long as your link remains in place, we'll keep our link to you right here. Please play fair - our crawlers are watching. Your site must be closely related to this one's topic. Any kind of spamming, dubious practises or removing the link will result in your link from us being dropped and, potentially, your whole site being banned. |
