WORD FORMATION

AFFIXATION

In linguistics, affixation is the process of adding a morpheme (or affix) to a word to create either (a) a different form of that word (e.g., bird → birds), or (b) a new word with a different meaning (bird → birder). Affixation is the most common way of making new words in English.
The two primary kinds of affixation are prefixation (the addition of a prefix) and suffixation (the addition of a suffix). Clusters of affixes can be used to form complex words.

Prefixes

A prefix is placed at the beginning of a word to modify or change its meaning. This is a list of the most common prefixes in English, together with their basic meaning and some examples. You can find more detail or precision for each prefix in any good dictionary.

A prefix goes at the beginning of a word. A suffix goes at the end of a word.

SUFFIXES

Unlike a prefix, a suffix is series of letters added at the end of a word. Suffixes fall into one of two categories: inflectional and derivational. 

Inflectional suffixes change the way you understand a word without changing its meaning. For example, what happens when you add the letter 's' to the word 'cookie'? It forms the word 'cookies'...the meaning doesn't change, but now you know there is more than one cookie (which is always a good thing!). Inflectional suffixes can also change the tense of a base word from present to past by adding the letters '-ed' (change 'walk' to 'walked') or can make the root word comparative or superlative by adding '-er' or '-est' ('big' becomes 'bigger' or 'biggest'). Again, the words have changed, but the meaning has not. 

Derivational suffixes change the meaning of a word. In addition to changing the meaning of a word, derivational suffixes can change an adjective to a noun or a verb, or change a noun to an adjective. The list below includes common derivational suffixes that you encounter on a daily basis:

• -able (able to do)
• -acy (quality)
• -er (someone who does something)
• -esque (similar to)
• -ish (having a similar quality)
• -ism (a belief)
• -ist (someone who does something)
• -less (without)

Let's take a look at a suffix in action. Think about the suffix '-less' and how it changes the nouns 'fear', 'friend', and 'emotion':

·      Fear becomes fearless, meaning “without fear”

·      Friend becomes friendless, meaning “without friends”

·      Emotion becomes emotionless, meaning “without emotion”

(http://study.com/academy/lesson/what-is-an-affix-definition-examples.html)

INFIXES

An infix is a word element (a type of affix) that can be inserted within the base form of a word (rather than at its beginning or end) to create a new word or intensify meaning. Also called an integrated adjective. The process of inserting an infix is called infixation.

(http://grammar.about.com/od/il/g/infixterm.htm)

CONFIXES

The term “confix” refers to a specific type of affix. Confixes are composed of at least one prefix and one suffix, which are placed on either side of a root word. When a confix is added to a root, a new meaning separate from the meaning of the root word by itself is created. The term “circumfix” is often used interchangeably with “confix.” Confixes are used extensively in Indonesian and Malay, and they appear to varying degrees in many other languages, such as Arabic, German and Japanese, to name a few.

“Confix” derives from Latin roots; con means “with” and fix means “attach” in this context. Unlike a prefix, which is attached to the front of a root, or a suffix, which is attached to the end, a confix is divided and attached to both ends. The fact that the separate parts of confixes appear on different sides of the root makes confixes discontinuous morphemes. Morphemes are the smallest units of a word that carry meaning. Though confixes are discontinuous, both of their halves must be present for the meaning to be formed.

(http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-a-confix.htm)

SUPERFIXES

Superfixes a suprasegmental feature distinguishing the meaning or grammatical function of one word or phrase from that of another, as stress does for example between the noun conduct and the verb conduct.

(from super- + -fix, on the model of prefix, suffix)

(http://dictionary.reverso.net/english-definition/superfix)

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Idiom

IDIOM

Simple Definition of idiom
: an expression that cannot be understood from the meanings of its separate words but that has a separate meaning of its own
: a form of a language that is spoken in a particular area and that uses some of its own words, grammar, and pronunciations
: a style or form of expression that is characteristic of a particular person, type of art, etc.
Source: Merriam-Webster's Learner's Dictionary
Examples: idiom in a sentence




Full Definition of idiom
1
a :  the language peculiar to a people or to a district, community, or class :  dialect
b :  the syntactical, grammatical, or structural form peculiar to a language
2
:  an expression in the usage of a language that is peculiar to itself either grammatically (as no, it wasn't me) or in having a meaning that cannot be derived from the conjoined meanings of its elements (as ride herd on for “supervise”)
3
:  a style or form of artistic expression that is characteristic of an individual, a period or movement, or a medium or instrument <the modern jazz idiom>; broadly :  manner, style <a new culinary idiom



Idioms exist in every language. An idiom is a word or phrase that is not taken literally, like “bought the farm” has nothing to do with purchasing real estate, but refers to dying. Idiom also refers to a dialect or jargon of a group of people, either in a certain region or a group with common interests, like in science, music, art, or business.
Common Idioms

Some idioms are used by most people that speak English; others are used by a more select group.Common idioms that refer to people include:
A chip on your shoulder - means you are holding a grudge
High as a kite - means you are drunk or on drugs
Sick as a dog - means you are very ill
Idioms that refer to your actions would be:
Rub someone the wrong way - meaning to annoy or bother
Jump the gun - would mean to be doing something early
Pay the piper - means you need to face the consequences of your actions
Some idioms use color words to convey other meanings. For example, there are several that use the word “blue:”
“The blues” can refer to both a style of music and feeling sad.
If something occurs rarely, it is said to happen “once in a blue moon”, because a blue moon is two full moons in one month, which doesn’t happen often.
“Out of the blue” means something happens that was unexpected.
Learning a Language with Idioms

Because of idioms, learning a language can be complicated. After you can conjugate verbs, and know a lot of words, you may still have difficulty speaking the language with native users.This is partly due to the use of idioms and would also depend of which region of a country you were in. Idiom usage is not just regional, but also varies according to people’s interests and social groups.The best way to pick up on the meaning of certain idioms would be to converse with people and ask them for a clarification of the idiom if you are.

 best way to pick up on the meaning of certain idioms would be to converse with people and ask them for a clarification of the idiom if you are not clear about the idiom they used. There are also sites on the Internet which will help explain the meaning of idioms.
Idioms Around the Globe

There are certain things that happen in every culture and there are idioms to deal with them.
In Norwegian and Czech, “walking around hot porridge” refers to beating around the bush, which is also an idiom meaning not getting to the point.
If you are in Italy or Turkey and you say you are “as hungry as a wolf” then you are starving.
If it is raining in large amounts, most cultures have an interesting way of saying that:
In English, it would be “raining cats and dogs”
In Africa, they might say “it's raining old women with clubs”
Many languages refer to heavy rain as coming in buckets or as rain coming out of a bucket.
In Norway they say “it's raining female trolls”
The Irish say “it's throwing cobblers knives”
Comparing idioms between countries can also be interesting:
In Finnish, “with long teeth” means you are doing something that you really don’t want to do
In French, “to have long teeth” means you are ambitious.
The key to understanding the local idioms is to listen carefully and to ask questions of local speakers.
Idioms In the Arts

There are many idioms in the field of music.
If you “fine tune” something, you make small improvements to it.
“Changing your tune” means changing your mind.
If you are “whistling Dixie” or “whistling in the dark” you are overly positive about something.
If you try and make a decision too early without knowing all the facts, people may tell you that “it’s not over ‘till the fat lady sings.”
Drama and dance have idioms, too, like:
“Break a leg” means good luck.
If you are a “ham” you overact.
If you say, “it takes two to tango” you mean that more than one person is at fault or involved.
If you “tap dance” your way out of a sticky situation.


https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Idiom

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Proverb

Proverb

A proverb (from Latin: proverbium) is a simple and concrete saying, popularly known and repeated, that expresses a truth based on common sense or experience. They are often metaphorical. A proverb that describes a basic rule of conduct may also be known as a maxim. Proverbs fall into the category of formulaic language.

Proverbs are often borrowed from similar languages and cultures, and sometimes come down to the present through more than one language. Both the Bible (including, but not limited to the Book of Proverbs) and medieval Latin (aided by the work of Erasmus) have played a considerable role in distributing proverbs across Europe. Mieder has concluded that cultures that treat the Bible as their "major spiritual book contain between three hundred and five hundred proverbs that stem from the Bible.However, almost every culture has examples of its own unique proverbs.
Defining a “proverb” is a difficult task. Proverb scholars often quote Archer Taylor’s classic “The definition of a proverb is too difficult to repay the undertaking... An incommunicable quality tells us this sentence is proverbial and that one is not. Hence no definition will enable us to identify positively a sentence as proverbial”. Another common definition is from Lord John Russell (c. 1850) “A proverb is the wit of one, and the wisdom of many.”

More constructively, Mieder has proposed the following definition, “A proverb is a short, generally known sentence of the folk which contains wisdom, truth, morals, and traditional views in a metaphorical, fixed, and memorizable form and which is handed down from generation to generation. Norrick created a table of distinctive features to distinguish proverbs from idioms, cliches, etc. Prahlad distinguishes proverbs from some other, closely related types of sayings, “True proverbs must further be distinguished from other types of proverbial speech, e.g. proverbial phrases, Wellerisms, maxims, quotations, and proverbial comparisons.”[6] Based on Persian proverbs, Zolfaghari and Ameri propose the following definition: "A proverb is a short sentence, which is well-known and at times rhythmic, including advice, sage themes and ethnic experiences, comprising simile, metaphor or irony which is well-known among people for its fluent wording, clarity of expression, simplicity, expansiveness and generality and is used either with or without change

There are many sayings in English that are commonly referred to as “proverbs”, such as weather sayings. Alan Dundes, however, rejects including such sayings among truly proverbs: “Are weather proverbs proverbs? I would say emphatically 'No!'”[8] The definition of “proverb” has also changed over the years. For example, the following was labeled “A Yorkshire proverb” in 1883, but would not be categorized as a proverb by most today, “as throng as Throp's wife when she


Examples

See also: List of proverbial phrases
Haste makes waste
A stitch in time saves nine
Ignorance is bliss
Mustn't cry over spilled milk.
You can catch more flies with honey than you can with vinegar.
You can lead a horse to water, but you can't make him drink.
Those who live in glass houses shouldn't throw stones.
A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush.
Fortune favours the bold
Well begun is half done.
A little learning is a dangerous thing
A rolling stone gathers no moss.
It ain't over till the fat lady sings
It is better to be smarter than you appear than to appear smarter than you are.
Good things come to those who wait.
A poor workman blames his tools.
A dog is a man's best friend.
An apple a day keeps the doctor away
If the shoe fits, wear it!
Honesty is the best policy
Slow and steady wins the race
Don't count your chickens before they hatch





http://www.dictionary.com/browse/proverb

http://examples.yourdictionary.com/examples-of-proverbs.html

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Polysemy

                     Polysemy


A polyseme is a word or phrase with different, but related senses. Since the test for polysemy is the vague concept of relatedness, judgments of polysemy can be difficult to make. Because applying pre-existing words to new situations is a natural process of language change, looking at words' etymology is helpful in determining polysemy but not the only solution; as words become lost in etymology, what once was a useful distinction of meaning may no longer be so. Some apparently unrelated words share a common historical origin, however, so etymology is not an infallible test for polysemy, and dictionary writers also often defer to speakers' intuitions to judge polysemy in cases where it contradicts etymology. English has many words which are polysemous. For example, the verb "to get" can mean "procure" (I'll get the drinks), "become" (she got scared), "understand" (I get it) etc.

In vertical polysemy a word refers to a member of a subcategory (e.g., 'dog' for 'male dog').A closely related idea is metonym, in which a word with one original meaning is used to refer to something else connected to it.

There are several tests for polysemy, but one of them is zeugma: if one word seems to exhibit zeugma when applied in different contexts, it is likely that the contexts bring out different polysemes of the same word. If the two senses of the same word do not seem to fit, yet seem related, then it is likely that they are polysemous. The fact that this test again depends on speakers' judgments about relatedness, however, means that this test for polysemy is not infallible, but is rather merely a helpful conceptual aid.

Polysemy is the association of one word with two or more distinct meanings. A polyseme is a word or phrase with multiple meanings. Adjective: polysemous or polysemic.

In contrast, a one-to-one match between a word and a meaning is called monosemy. According to William Croft, "Monosemy is probably most clearly found in specialized vocabulary dealing with technical topics" (The Handbook of Linguistics, 2003).

When a word or phrase has several meanings, you can describe that word as polysemous. One word that's famously polysemous is "bank."
You can choose a pronunciation for this adjective with stress on the second or third syllable since most dictionaries give both. Polysemous is a word lover's favorite, since it's about the meanings of words — lots of them in this case. Its complementary buddy is monosemous, which describes words that have only one meaning. The Greek root of polysemous is polysemos, "of many senses."


When a word or phrase has several meanings, you can describe that word as polysemous. One word that's famously polysemous is "bank."
You can choose a pronunciation for this adjective with stress on the second or third syllable since most dictionaries give both. Polysemous is a word lover's favorite, since it's about the meanings of words — lots of them in this case. Its complementary buddy is monosemous, which describes words that have only one meaning. The Greek root of polysemous is polysemos, "of many senses."

Examples


I  went walking this morning

We went for a walk last Sunday

Do you walk the dog every day?

I live near Meadow Walk Drive

The wardrobe is too heavy to lift; we’ll have to walk it into the bedroom (move a large object by rocking).

She walks the tower (to haunt a place as a ghost).

The workers threatened to walk (to go on strike).

Walk with God! (to live your life in a particular way)




http://www.afv.gr/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=161:polysemy-a-homonymy&catid=121:miscellaneous&Itemid=352

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hyperbole

 hyperbole

 

Hyperbole from Greek: ὑπερβολή hyperbolē, which means "excessive") is the excessive use as a rhetorical device or figuratively. This can be used to evoke strong feelings or to make a strong impression, but not meant to be taken literally.

Hyperbole is used to create the effect of exaggerating or for emphasis. As a literary device, Hyperbole is often used in poetry, and often encountered in casual speech. Lots use Hyperbole that describes something that is better or worse than it actually is. Examples of Hyperbole is :. ".The Bag weighed a ton" Hyperbole create the impression that the bag was very heavy, though perhaps not until weighing tons.

In the words of rhetoric, some opponents of Hyperbole is a figure of speech meiosis, litotes, understatement, lackluster, prosaic, dull and bathos (used to describe a 'disappointment' after Hyperbole figure of speech in a phrase). Hyperbole is a form of word-karta that use excessive statements or claims should not be taken literally. Hyperbole is not only used in rhetoric, but also often found in everyday conversation.

Hyperbole can be found in the literature and oral communication. They will not be used in the works of nonfiction, such as medical journals or research papers; However, they are perfect for a work of fiction, mainly to add color to the characters or the humor of the story.

Hyperbole is a ratio, such as simile and metaphor, but it is outrageous and even ridiculous.

Hyperbole gives the effect of passion and excitement

exaample

“I’ve told you a million times”.

 Aku sudah bilang padamu sejuta kali

“It was so cold, I saw polar bears wearing jackets”.

Itu sangat dingin, hingga aku melihat beruang kutub mengenakan jaket

“

“I am so hungry I could eat a horse”.

Saya sangat lapar aku bisa makan kuda.

“I have a million things to do”.

Aku punya sejuta hal yang harus dilakukan.

“I had to walk 15 miles to school in the snow, uphill”.

Aku harus berjalan 15 kilometer ke sekolah dalam salju, menanjak bukit.

“I had a ton of homework”.

Aku punya satu ton pekerjaan rumah.

“If I can’t buy that new game, I will die”.

Jika saya tidak bisa membeli permainan baru, saya akan mati.

“He is as skinny as a toothpick”.

Dia sekurus tusuk gigi.

“This car goes faster than the speed of light”.

Mobil ini berjalan lebih cepat dari kecepatan cahaya.

“That new car costs a bazillion dollars”.

Mobil baru itu seharga bazillion dolar.

“We are so poor; we don’t have two cents to rub together”.

Kami sangat miskin; kami tidak memiliki dua sen untuk menggosok bersama-sama.

“That joke is so old, the last time I heard it I was riding on a dinosaur”.

Lelucon yang sangat tua, terakhir kali saya mendengar itu ketika saya naik dinosaurus.

“They ran like greased lightning”.

Mereka berlari seperti kilat berminyak.

“He’s got tons of money”.

Dia punya berton-ton uang.

“You could have knocked me over with a feather”.

Anda bisa mengetuk saya dengan bulu.

“Her brain is the size of a pea”.

Otaknya seukuran kacang polong.

“He is older than the hills”.

Dia lebih tua dari bukit-bukit.

Hyperbole in Media and Literature

If used properly, Hyperbole may encourage consumers to buy a product.

Marketing research of Roger J. Kreuz, PhD for military personnel Science Research Workshop in June 2001 in Memphis TN, has shown that 75% of ads using at least one figuratively.

 example

 

“adds amazing luster for infinite, mirror-like shine”.  (Brilliant Brunette shampoo)

Menambah kilau yang luar biasa untuk tak terbatas, bersinar seperti cermin

“It doesn’t get better than this”. (Oscar Meyer)

“I am so hungry I could eat a horse”.

Saya sangat lapar aku bisa makan kuda.

“I have a million things to do”.

Aku punya sejuta hal yang harus dilakukan.

“I had to walk 15 miles to school in the snow, uphill”.

Aku harus berjalan 15 kilometer ke sekolah dalam salju, menanjak bukit.

“I had a ton of homework”.

Aku punya satu ton pekerjaan rumah.

“If I can’t buy that new game, I will die”.

Jika saya tidak bisa membeli permainan baru, saya akan mati.

“He is as skinny as a toothpick”.

Dia sekurus tusuk gigi.

“This car goes faster than the speed of light”.

Mobil ini berjalan lebih cepat dari kecepatan cahaya.

“That new car costs a bazillion dollars”.

Mobil baru itu seharga bazillion dolar.

“We are so poor; we don’t have two cents to rub together”.

Kami sangat miskin; kami tidak memiliki dua sen untuk menggosok bersama-sama.

“That joke is so old, the last time I heard it I was riding on a dinosaur”.

Lelucon yang sangat tua, terakhir kali saya mendengar itu ketika saya naik dinosaurus.

“They ran like greased lightning”.

Mereka berlari seperti kilat berminyak.

“He’s got tons of money”.

Dia punya berton-ton uang.

“You could have knocked me over with a feather”.

Anda bisa mengetuk saya dengan bulu.

“Her brain is the size of a pea”.

Otaknya seukuran kacang polong.

“He is older than the hills”.

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Metonymy and synedoche

 

 Metonymy and synedoche

 

Metonymy is a figure of speech in which something is called by a new name that is related in meaning to the original thing or concept. For example, it’s common practice to refer to celebrity life and culture in the United States as “Hollywood,” as in “Hollywood is obsessed with this new diet.” The meaning of this statement is not that the place itself has any obsession, of course, but instead refers to the celebrities and wannabe celebrities who reside there.

Common Examples of Metonymy

As noted above, “Hollywood” can act as a metonym for celebrity culture. There are many other place names that act metonymically in the same way, such as “Wall Street” for the financial sector and “Washington” for the United States government. However, there are many more words in common usage that are metonyms. Here are more examples of metonymy:

• The big house—Refers to prison
• The pen—Can refer to prison or to the act of writing
• Stuffed shirts—People in positions of authority, especially in a business setting
• The crown—a royal person
• The Yankees/The Red Sox/The Cowboys, etc.—any team name is regularly used as a metonym for the players on the team. This is a less obvious metonym because often the team name is a group of people (the Cowboys, for instance), yet of course the football players who make up the Dallas Cowboys are not, in fact, cowboys.
• The New York Times/Morgan Stanley/Wells Fargo, etc.—any organization or company name is often used to stand in for the people who work there, such as “The New York Times stated that…” or “Wells Fargo has decided….”

Difference Between Metonymy and Synecdoche

Metonymy and synecdoche are very similar figures of speech, and some consider synecdoche to be a specific type of metonymy. Synecdoche occurs when the name of a part is used to refer to the whole, such as in “There are hungry mouths to feed.” The mouths stand in for the hungry people. The definition of metonymy is more expansive, including concepts that are merely associated in meaning and not necessarily parts of the original thing or concept.

Metonymy is often confused with another figure of speech called synecdoche. They resemble each other but are not the same. Synecdoche refers to a thing by the name of one of its parts. For example, calling a car “a wheel” is a synecdoche. A part of a car i.e. “a wheel” stands for the whole car. In a metonymy, on the other hand, the word we use to describe another thing is closely linked to that particular thing, but is not a part of it. For example, “Crown” which means power or authority is a metonymy.

Metonymy is different from a metaphor. A metaphor draws resemblance between two different things as in “You are sunlight and I moon” – Sun And Moon from Miss Saigon. Sunlight (and moon) and human are two different things without any association but it attempts to describe one thing in terms of another based on a supposed similarity. Metonymy, however, develops relation on the grounds of close associations as in “The White House is concerned about terrorism.” The White House here represents the people who work in it.

Examples of Metonymy in Everyday Life

We use metonymy frequently in our everyday life. For a better understanding, let us observe a few metonymy examples:

• England decides to keep check on immigration. (England refers to the government.)
• The pen is mightier than the sword. (Pen refers to written words and sword to military force.)
• The Oval Office was busy in work. (“The Oval Office” is a metonymy as it stands for people at work in the office.)
• Let me give you a hand. (Hand means help.)

Function of Metonymy

Generally, metonymy is used in developing literary symbolism i.e. it gives more profound meanings to otherwise common ideas and objects. By using metonymy, texts exhibit deeper or hidden meanings and thus drawing readers’ attention.  In addition, the use of metonymy helps achieve conciseness. For instance, “Rifles were guarding the gate” is more concise than “The guards with rifles in their hands were guarding the gate.”
Furthermore, metonymy, like other literary devices, is employed to add a poetic color to words to make them come to life. The simple ordinary things are described in a creative way to insert this “life” factor to the literary works.

Synecdoche

A synecdoche is a type of trope, which is a figure of speech. When used in literature, a synecdoche will add to the visual imagery of the passage and enhance the reader’s experience.    

Synecdoche Forms

There are several different forms of synecdoche examples including:

• A synecdoche may use part of something to represent the entire whole.
• It may use an entire whole thing to represent a part of it.  
• It can use a word or phrase as a class that will express less or more than the word or phrase actually means.  
• It may use a group of things that refer to a larger group or use a large group to refer to a smaller group.  
• A synecdoche may also refer to an object by the material it is made from or refer to the contents in a container by the name of the container.  

Here are examples of each type of synecdoche.

Part to Represent Whole

It is common in our language for part of something to be used to represent the whole.
For example:

• The word “bread” can be used to represent food in general or money (e.g. he is the breadwinner; music is my bread and butter). 
• The word “sails” is often used to refer to a whole ship.
• The phrase "hired hands" can be used to refer to workmen.
• The word "head" refers to cattle.
• The word "wheels" refers to a vehicle.

Whole to Represent a Part

Using the whole to refer to a part is also a common practice in speech today.
For example:

• At the Olympics, you will hear that the United States won a gold medal in an event. That actually means a team from the United States, not the country as a whole.  
• If “the world” is not treating you well, that would not be the entire world but just a part of it that you've encountered.
• The word "society" is often used to refer to high society or the social elite.
• The word "police" can be used to represent only one or a few police officers.
• The "pentagon" can refer to a few decision-making generals.
• "Capitol Hill" refers to both the U.S. Senate and the House of Representatives.  

Class as Representing the Whole

A large group or class is sometimes used to represent a portion of it.

• One example of this is referring to the United States as “America” when the “Americas” is actually made up of many countries.
• "Milk" is commonly used to refer to cow's milk when, in reality there are many sources of milk.

Specific Part Representing A Whole

Sometimes a specific thing is used to denote an entire class or group of things.

• Asking someone to put their “John Hancock” on a document refers to anyone putting their signature there.  
• It is fairly common in the United States to refer to any carbonated beverage as “Coke”.
• Facial tissue is often referred to as "Kleenex"

Material Representing an Object

The material used to make something, or that was used in the past, is often used to represent the entire object.
For example:

• Silverware or dishes made of silver may be called “silver” even if they aren't sold silver. 
• The word “plastic” is commonly used to refer to credit cards.
• The word "ivories" is often used to denote piano keys, even though the keys are no longer made of ivory.
• When a golfer plays with their "woods" they are referring to their longest golf clubs.
• The word "lead" is commonly used to refer to bullets.

Container Representing its Contents

Lastly, the name of a container may be used to denote its contents.

• One example is using the word “barrel” for a barrel of oil or beer.
• A "keg" is used to refer to a keg of beer.   

Synecdoche vs Metonymy

It is easy to confuse synecdoche and metonymy because they both use a word or phrase to represent something else. They could also both be considered metaphors because the word or words used are not taken literally.
However:

• A synecdoche uses part for the whole or the whole for a part.
• A metonymy is a substitution where a word or phrase is used in place of another word or phrase. A good example is the phrase “The pen is mightier than the sword.” The word “pen” substitutes for written work, and the word “sword” substitutes for violence or warfare.  

So, now you have many examples and can recognize a synecdoche when you see one.

Read more at http://examples.yourdictionary.com/examples-of-synecdoche.html#YM9r2rplSGOI80E6.99

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antonomasia

I. What is Antonomasia?

Antonomasia (pronounced an-tuh-nuh–mey-zhuh) is a literary term in which a descriptive phrase replaces a person’s name.  Antonomasia can range from lighthearted nicknames to epic names.

The phrase antonomasia is derived from the Greek phrase antonomazein meaning “to name differently.”



II. Examples of Antonomasia

Oftentimes, antonomasia is used to call attention to a certain characteristic.

Example 1

Imagine that you have a friend who is a fantastic chef, and you want to say hello.

Normal sentence:

“Oh, look! Sam’s arrived!”

Sentence with Antonomasia:

“Oh, look! The great chef has arrived!”

Here, the use of antonomasia allows you to greet your friend with a nickname which also reveals something about his character: he’s a great chef.



Example 2

For another example, consider that you have a grumpy teacher:

Normal sentence:

“He’s grumpy, boring, doesn’t want to listen to anyone, and definitely doesn’t want to help anyone.”

Sentence with Antonomasia:

“Mr. Grumps doesn’t want to listen to anyone, and definitely doesn’t want to help anyone.”

Replacing the teacher’s actual name with his defining characteristic, grumpiness, serves to highlight just how much the mood is associated with the man.



Example 3

For a commonly use example of antonomasia, consider two women discussing men:

Normal sentence:

“He’s such a good guy. I enjoy his company so much! I just hope he’s the right guy for me.”

With the addition of antonomasia, we can emphasize the quality she hopes to find in this man:

Sentence with Antonomasia:

“He’s such a good guy. I enjoy his company so much! I just hope he’s Mr. Right.“

Giving a man the title “Mr. Right” is an everyday example of antonomasia in conversation.



III. The importance of using Antonomasia

Antonomasia can provide someone with a strong epithet which further celebrates and memorializes their great deeds. In advertising and pop culture, such wording can also further celebrate the famous, such as The Beatles as “The Fab Four.”

Uses for antonomasia vary slightly depending on the time period. In the past, antonomasia would be used to designate class members, as oftentimes people’s names were linked to their professions. Antonomasia was also used in the past to give positive names to strong warriors and negative names to weak or nasty people.

Here are a few examples of antonomasia in the past:

Aristotle as “The Philosopher”
Winston Churchill as “The Great Commoner”
William Shakespeare as “The Bard”
In this way, the past is similar to the present, as we tend to use antonomasia purely for enjoyment and fun with nicknames.





https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antonomasia

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