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periphrasis

pe·riph·ra·sis

periphrasis

 
 
pronunciation:
p rI fr sihs
features:
Word Parts
part of speech: noun
inflections: periphrases
definition 1: an indirect or roundabout way of phrasing something; circumlocution.
A writer uses periphrasis when he refers to pistols as "the instruments of destruction."
similar words:
circumlocution
definition 2: anything phrased in this way.
similar words:
circumlocution
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