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periphrasis

/pəˈrɪf.rəs.ɪs/

Translations

periphrasisnoun

periphrases

/pəˈrɪf.rəs.ɪs/

périphraseProcédé consistant à dire les choses de façon détournée ou indirecte.

The politician's speech was full of periphrasis, making it difficult to understand his actual stance on the issue.

Le discours du politicien était rempli de périphrases, ce qui rendait difficile la compréhension de sa véritable position sur la question.

Additional translations

périphraseEn linguistique, tournure exprimant une valeur grammaticale au moyen de plusieurs mots plutôt que d’une flexion.

Synonyms

circumlocution

roundabout expression

expansion

wordiness

verbosity

Definitions

periphrasisnoun

The use of indirect and circumlocutory speech or writing.

The politician's speech was full of periphrasis, making it difficult to understand his actual stance on the issue.

A roundabout way of speaking or writing, often used to avoid saying something directly.

Instead of saying 'he died,' she used a periphrasis, saying 'he passed away to a better place.'

In linguistics, a phrase used to express a grammatical meaning that would otherwise be conveyed by inflection (e.g., using separate words rather than a bound morpheme).

In English, 'more beautiful' is a periphrasis for the comparative form 'prettier'.