synecdochismn.
/sᵻˈnɛkdəkɪz(ə)m/, U.S. /səˈnɛkdəˌkɪz(ə)m/ 1. Grammar and Rhetoric. Synecdochic style; the use of synecdoche. Also in extended use.
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > the arts > literature > style of language or writing > figure of speech > figures of meaning > [noun] > synecdoche > use of
synecdochism1854
1854 C. D. Badham Prose Halieutics 463 The surmise of Jovius, though not absolutely impossible is..so unusual a specimen of catachrestic synecdochism as to be scarcely admissible.
1971 Crane Bag 1 69/2 A simple brush drawing..has become..an image of the whole in the part, the old synecdochism of the Celt.
2009 E. Descheemaeker Division of Wrongs i. iii. 66 (note) Synecdochism..commonly occurs when a characteristic happens to be present in most elements of a set (or even all of them, but without being part of its essence).
2. Cultural Anthropology. A belief, or practice based on this belief, that a part of an object or person is equivalent to the whole, so that anything done to, or by means of, the part is held to take effect upon, or have the effect of, the whole.
ΘΚΠ
the world > the supernatural > the occult > sorcery, witchcraft, or magic > [noun] > use of part for whole
synecdochism1897
1897 16th Ann. Rep. Bureau Amer. Ethnol. 1894–5 23 One or more pieces of the skull (for in synecdochism the piece carries the virtue of the whole) of the slain enemy were used as amulets.
1909 Cent. Dict. Suppl. at Synecdochism Witchcraft by means of hair or parings of nails of the victim is an example of synecdochism.
1988 M. Jackson in G. N. Appell & T. N. Madan Choice & Morality in Anthropol. Perspective iv. viii. 204 This synecdochism does not indicate an inability to abstract on the part of African thinkers.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, March 2014; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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n.1854