catachresis
pronunciation
How to pronounce catachresis in British English:
UK [ˌkætə'kri:sɪs]
How to pronounce catachresis in American English:
US [ˌkætə'krisɪs]
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- Noun:
- strained or paradoxical use of words either in error (as `blatant' to mean `flagrant') or deliberately (as in a mixed metaphor: `blind mouths')
Word Origin
- catachresis (n.)
- 1580s, from Latin catachresis, from Greek katakhresis "misuse" (of a word), from katakhresthai "to misuse," from kata- "down" (here with a sense of "perversion;" see cata-) + khresthai "to use" (see hortatory). Related: Catachrestic; catachrestical; catachrestically.