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- pronunciation:
- ih
lIp
t
kl
- features:
- Word Combinations (adjective)
| part of speech: |
adjective |
| definition 1: |
of, pertaining to, or in the form of an ellipse.
The planets move in an elliptical orbit around the sun.- similar words:
- oval
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| definition 2: |
pertaining to, containing, or characterized by grammatical ellipsis.
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| definition 3: |
pertaining to economy of oral or written expression.
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| definition 4: |
tending toward or characterized by an economy of expression that creates ambiguity or obscurity, often purposefully.
In Macbeth, the witches' elliptical utterance, "Fair is foul, and foul is fair," is a puzzling warning about good and evil in the play. |
| related words: |
brief, cryptic, eccentric, round |
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| derivations: |
elliptic (adj.), elliptically (adv.) |
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