synecdoche

[si-nek-duh-kee] / sɪˈnɛk də ki /

NOUN

figure of speech

Synonyms

WEAK

adumbration allegory alliteration allusion analogue analogy anaphora anticlimax antistrophe antithesis aposiopesis apostrophe asyndeton bathos comparison conceit device echoism ellipsis euphemism euphuism exaggeration expression flourish flower hyperbole image imagery irony litotes malapropism manner of speaking metaphor metonymy onomatopoeia ornament oxymoron parable paradox parallel personification proteron rhetoric sarcasm satire simile stylistic device trope tropology turn of phrase understatement way of speaking

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

The near-perfect overlay of the religious image with a political image is a visual synecdoche for the Revolution’s replacement of Christianity with the cults of Nature and Reason.

From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 21, 2025

In Darlington’s Devon neighborhood, the synecdoche for global habitat destruction is the arrival of a sign in a soon-to-be-former farm field: “Site Acquired for Development.”

From Washington Post • Feb. 6, 2023

Baseball is practically a synecdoche for summer—the season of shared, relaxing stillness in the sun.

From Slate • May 22, 2020

The home, a nation unto itself, falls easily into the pitfalls of synecdoche.

From Salon • Mar. 21, 2020

But when we said "speech," we intended to employ a synecdoche, and that "expression" generically, should be understood, for expression is not only so-called verbal expression, as we have already noted.

From Aesthetic as Science of Expression and General Linguistic by Croce, Benedetto

Vocabulary lists containing synecdoche

Poetry: Literary Devices

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Rhetoric

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The AP English Exam: Rhetorical and Literary Terms 4

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