periphrasis

Plural: periphrases

Noun

• a style that involves indirect ways of expressing things
• The use of a longer expression instead of a shorter one with a similar meaning, for example "I am going to" instead of "I will".
• Expressing a grammatical meaning (such as a tense) using a syntactic construction rather than morphological marking.
• The substitution of a descriptive word or phrase for a proper name (a type of circumlocution).
• The use of a proper name as a shorthand to stand for qualities associated with it.

Examples

• Language learners sometimes use periphrases like "did go" where a native speaker would use "went".
• Native speakers use periphrases like "did not go" where a language learner might use "went not".

Synonyms

ambage, circumlocution, beating around the bush

Related Words

periphrase, periphrastic