periphrasis
/pษหษนษชfษนษsษชs/IPA: /P ER0 IH1 F R EY1 S IH0 S/
noun
- 1
The use of a longer expression instead of a shorter one with a similar meaning, for example "I am going to" instead of "I will".
- 2
Expressing a grammatical meaning (such as a tense) using a syntactic construction rather than morphological marking.
โLanguage learners sometimes use periphrases like "did go" where a native speaker would use "went".โ
- 3
The substitution of a descriptive word or phrase for a proper name (a species of circumlocution).
- 4
The use of a proper name as a shorthand to stand for qualities associated with it.
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