antonomasia

an·to·no·ma·sia

A a

Transcription

- US Pronunciation
- US IPA
- UK Pronunciation
- UK IPA
- [an-tuh-nuh-mey-zhuh]
- /ˌæn tə nəˈmeɪ ʒə/
- /ˌantənəmˈeɪziə/

- US Pronunciation
- US IPA
- [an-tuh-nuh-mey-zhuh]
- /ˌæn tə nəˈmeɪ ʒə/

Definitions of antonomasia word

noun antonomasia the substitution of a title or epithet for a proper name, such as his highness 3
noun antonomasia the use of a proper name for an idea 3
noun antonomasia the use of an epithet or title in place of a name, as in calling a judge his honor 3
noun antonomasia the use of a proper name in place of a common noun which it represents, as in calling a philanderer a Don Juan 3
noun antonomasia Rhetoric. the identification of a person by an epithet or appellative that is not the person's name, as his lordship. 1
noun antonomasia the use of the name of a person who was distinguished by a particular characteristic, as Don Juan or Annie Oakley, to designate a person or group of persons having the same characteristic. 1

See all 9 definitions of antonomasia

Information block about the term

Origin of antonomasia

First appearance:

before 1580

One of the 35% oldest English words

1580-90; < Latin < Greek, verbid of antonomázein to call by a new name, equivalent to ant- ant- + onomat- stem of ónoma name + -ia -ia

Historical Comparancy

Parts of speech for Antonomasia

noun

adjective

verb

adverb

pronoun

preposition

conjunction

determiner

exclamation

Full grammatical hierarchy of Antonomasia

antonomasia popularity

A pretty common term. Usually people know it’s meaning, but prefer to use a more spread out synonym. About 48% of English native speakers know the meaning and use word.

According to our data about 63% of words is more used. This is a rare but used term. It occurs in the pages of specialized literature and in the speech of educated people.

antonomasia usage trend in Literature

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