This week’s theme
Words about words

This week’s words
kenning
mot juste
holophrasm
pochismo
antonomasia

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A.Word.A.Day

PRONUNCIATION:

(HOL-uh-fraz-um)

MEANING:

noun:
1. A one-word sentence, for example, “Go.”
2. A complex idea conveyed in a single word, for example, “Howdy” for “How do you do?”

ETYMOLOGY:

From Greek holos (whole) + phrasis (speech). Earliest documented use: 1862.

USAGE:

“Holophrasms aren’t common in English, but any verb in command form can be holophrastic -- Go, Help, Run.”
Kathryn Schulz; What Part of ‘No, Totally’ Don’t You Understand?; The New Yorker; Apr 7, 2015.

A THOUGHT FOR TODAY: