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Wednesday 25 March 2015

Nuts and Bolts: metalepsis.

Metalepsis is just a bit of fun, really.

It's twisting a figure of speech, usually playfully, to turn a cliche into something less boring.

'I've got to catch the worm tomorrow,' is a rather nice example I've just pinched from Wikipedia; a lovely way to announce an intention of early rising.

There's much fun to be had.

My insurance company proved to despise the best policy. 

Relations are thicker than water.

Won't cleanliness do?

I hope that's enough examples. 

Well, what do you expect? You're not exactly a chooser, are you.

Thing To Use Today: metalepsis. This word is Greek. Meta- is to to do with change, and lambanein means to take.

Metalepsis is also used as a term in narratology and rhetoric, but those can wait for another time. It's also the name of a sub-genus of moth.


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