Posted on 10/27/2011 4:33:44 AM PDT by secret garden
In order that we might all raise the level of discourse and expand our language abilities, here is the daily post of "Word for the Day".
catachresis \kat-uh-KREE-sis\ , noun
1 use of the wrong word for the context
2 use of a forced and especially paradoxical figure of speech
Example sentences:
"Online dictionaries are handy. One can click on synonyms and antonyms, follow new links and lures, and get pleasantly lost in a high-tech thicket of info. Being a tap or two away, more people might be tempted to look up unfamiliar words. And anything that counteracts catachresis is fine with us."
-- From an editorial in the Telegram & Gazette (Massachusetts), December 7, 2009
"Dryden had drawn attention to Cleveland's poetic manner in Of Dramatick Poesy: An Essay (1668), creating the label 'Clevelandism' to name the poet's habit of catachresis, 'wresting and torturing a word into another meaning', and making unfavorable comparisons between Donne and Cleveland…."
-- From Nigel Smith's 2010 book Andrew Marvell: The Chameleon
Etymology:
As you might have guessed, "catachresis" is a word favored by grammarians. It can sometimes be used merely as a fancy label of disparagement for uses the grammarian finds unacceptable --as when Henry Fowler insisted in 1926 that "mutual" in "our mutual friend" was a catachresis. (Fowler preferred "common," but "mutual" does have an established sense which is correct in that context.) The first recorded use of "catachresis" dates to1553, and it has been used to describe (or decry) misuses of a word ever since. "Catachresis" comes to us by way of Latin from the Greek word "katachrēsis," which means "misuse."
The sentence must, in some way, relate to the news of the day. The Review threads are linked for your edification. ;-)
Practice makes perfect.....post on....
Review Thread One: Word For The Day, Thursday 11/14/02: Raffish (Be SURE to check out posts #92 and #111 on this thread!)
Review Thread Two: Word For The Day, Tuesday 1/14/03: Roister
Review Thread Three: Word For The Day, Tuesday 1/28/03: Obdurate
WFB's attempt to emulate us ; ) No pushing at the door please!
Rise and shine!
do not wanna/.
I guess using there, instead of their, as so frequently happens on FR, does not count as a catachresis.
Good morning!
“Obama gonna be re-elected because he still looks Presidential and dresses Presidential.... just look at the catachresis in his pants!”
I LOVE that story - I just posted on the thread, can you imagine the protesters telling those they have termed “professional homeless” that they aren’t good enough to eat their food? lol
In ‘08, the whole Obama thesis
Was a fraud, a sham, a catachresis
They called him “The One”
Like he’s God’s other son
Left the whole country praying to Jesus
i am just incredulous that there are idiots willing to cook food for these animals! i would be more likely to cook up food from scratch for my dogs than that group!
I think Oreilly had a figure last night, something like 46% of the country is flat out TERRIFIED of obama being reelected. I know i'm one.
I imagine the first day they had a smaller group and everyone “offered” to do a job to get things rolling. A month later the cooks are stuck in a tent, not getting to dance and get high - under appreciated - and now the dirty professional homeless are horning in on THEIR hard work. How dare they take from them? lol
Are you sure this isn’t another word for Catholic Sunday school in Chinatown?
Is that you David Brooks? lol
I thought it was one of Fluffy's female littermates monitoring RPM's in my neighbor's Mustang.
No, and they don't even know they're committing a crime when they do it.
Good stuff at the link.
LMAO! good one. i can’t quite get my head around the R in this word!
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