catachresis

noun

cat·a·chre·sis | \ ˌka-tə-ˈkrē-səs

plural catachreses\ ˌka-tə-ˈkrē-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

Keep scrolling for more

Other Words from catachresis

catachrestic \ ˌka-tə-ˈkre-stik

\ or catachrestical \ ˌka-tə-ˈkre-sti-kəl

\ adjective

catachrestically \ ˌka-tə-ˈkre-sti-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."