pleonasm
noun
Did you know?
Pleonasm, which stems (via Late Latin) from the Greek verb pleonazein, meaning "to be excessive," is a fancy word for "redundancy." It's related to our words plus and plenty, and ultimately it goes back to the Greek word for "more," which is pleōn. Pleonasm is commonly considered a fault of style, but it can also serve a useful function. "Extra" words can sometimes be helpful to a speaker or writer in getting a message across, adding emphasis, or simply adding an appealing sound and rhythm to a phrase—as, for example, with the pleonasm "I saw it with my own eyes!"
Word History
Late Latin pleonasmus, from Greek pleonasmos, from pleonazein to be excessive, from pleiōn, pleōn more — more at plus
1610, in the meaning defined at sense 1
pleonasm
noun
Synonyms & Similar Words
- tautology
- verboseness
- garrulity
- logorrhea
- verbalism
- prolixity
- periphrasis
- wordiness
- diffuseness
- wordage
- garrulousness
- circumlocution
- verbosity
- diffusion
- windiness
- repetition
- circularity
- long-windedness
- repetitiousness
- redundancy
- reiteration
- exaggeration
- repetitiveness
- hyperbole
- digressiveness
- overstatement
- verbiage
- circuitousness
- embroidering
- embellishment
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
- succinctness
- brevity
- terseness
- compactness
- conciseness
- pithiness
- briefness
- crispness
- concision
- six-eared barley
- six-figure
- six-four chord
- six-gilled shark
- six-gun
- six-guns
- six-man football
- six-master
- six-o-six
- six-pack
- six-pack bezique
- Six-Principle Baptist
- six-rowed barley
- six-shafted bird of paradise
- six-shooter
- six-shooters
- six-spotted leafhopper
- six-spotted mite
- six-square
- six-three-three
- six-weeks grama
- six-weeks grass
- six-wheeler
- sixain
- sixaines