catachresis

noun

cat·a·chre·sis | \ ˌka-tə-ˈkrē-səs

plural catachreses\-ˌsēz

Definition of catachresis

1 : use of the wrong word for the context

2 : use of a forced and especially paradoxical figure of speech (such as blind mouths)

Other Words from catachresis Did You Know? Learn More about catachresis

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Other words from catachresis

catachrestic \-ˈkres-tik

\ or catachrestical \-ti-kəl

\ adjective

catachrestically \-ti-k(ə-)lē

\ adverb

Did You Know?

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 earliest recorded uses of catachresis date to the mid-16th century, 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."