Pleonasm
Definition
- Pleonasm is the use of more words then is needed for the explanation of an idea.
- Form of redundancy, which has the definition of exceeding what is necessary.
- Also relates to rhetorical tautology, which is where the same thing is said more then once, but in different words.
- Examples: “black darkness”, “cold ice”, “burning fire”
Examples
- “Sorry can you repeat that again?”
- “I forgot my PIN number again for the ATM machine.”
Examples from Literature
- “The most unkindest cut of all.”
(William Shakespeare, Julius Caesar)
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