periphrasis

noun

pe·riph·ra·sis pə-ˈri-frə-səs

plural periphrases pə-ˈri-frə-ˌsēz

Synonyms of periphrasis next

: use of a longer phrasing in place of a possible shorter form of expression

: an instance of periphrasis

Did you know?

It's easy enough to point out the origins of periphrasis: the word was borrowed into English in the early 16th century via Latin from Greek periphrazein, which in turn comes from the prefix peri-, meaning "all around," and the verb phrazein, "to point out." Two common descendants of phrazein in English are phrase and paraphrase, the latter of which combines phrazein with the prefix para-, meaning "closely resembling." Another phrazein descendant is the less familiar word holophrasis, meaning "the expression of a complex of ideas in a single word or in a fixed phrase." (The prefix holo- can mean "completely.")

Examples of periphrasis in a Sentence

congressional hearings into the Watergate scandal were marked by an orgy of periphrasis, the expression “at this point in time” being a memorable example