rhetorical device
Oratorical flourish method
A rhetorical device is a technique used in speech or writing to persuade, emphasize, or create effect.
Common examples include repetition, metaphor, irony, and rhetorical questions.
The term covers hundreds of specific techniques, from simple parallel structure to elaborate figures like chiasmus.
The candidate's speech was packed with rhetorical devices designed to stir emotion.
Implied identity comparison
- simileComparison via "as"
- hyperboleRhetorical extreme exaggeration
- ironyMeaning opposite to words
- personificationAttributing humanity to non-humans
oxymoron · synecdoche · metonymy · allegory · euphemism · litotes · zeugma · pun
Repeated opening words
- epistropheRepeating concluding words
- chiasmusInverted parallel construction
- parallelismMatching structural elements
- polysyndetonExcessive conjunction use
climax · anticlimax · tricolon · parenthesis · ellipsis
Formal deductive argument structure
- premiseFoundation for logical argument
- thesisAcademic argument requiring defense
- antithesisDirect opposite; contrasting juxtaposition
- synthesisCombining parts into whole
reductio ad absurdum · analogy · induction · deduction · inference · counterargument · dialectic · straw man
Matching initial consonants
- assonanceVowel sound repetition
- consonanceHarmonious sound combination
- euphonyPleasant arrangement of sounds
- cacophonyHarsh, clashing sounds
onomatopoeia · rhythm · cadence · sibilance · rhyme · meter · prosody · resonance
Collective moral character
- pathosPity-evoking quality
- logosBrand identification symbols
- appealFormal review request
- sophistryDeceptive reasoning
demagoguery · propaganda · suasion · exigence · stasis · concession · refutation · apologia
metaphor
Implied identity comparison
personification · oxymoron · synecdoche · metonymy · allegory · euphemism · litotes · zeugma · pun · paradox
anaphora
Repeated opening words
- epistropheRepeating concluding words
- chiasmusInverted parallel construction
- parallelismMatching structural elements
polysyndeton · climax · anticlimax · tricolon · parenthesis · ellipsis
syllogism
Formal deductive argument structure
- premiseFoundation for logical argument
- thesisAcademic argument requiring defense
- antithesisDirect opposite; contrasting juxtaposition
synthesis · reductio ad absurdum · analogy · induction · deduction · inference · counterargument · dialectic · straw man · false dilemma
alliteration
Matching initial consonants
- assonanceVowel sound repetition
- consonanceHarmonious sound combination
- euphonyPleasant arrangement of sounds
cacophony · onomatopoeia · rhythm · cadence · sibilance · rhyme · meter · prosody · resonance · dissonance
ethos
Collective moral character
sophistry · demagoguery · propaganda · suasion · exigence · stasis · concession · refutation · apologia · encomium
diction
Choice of words
syntax · ornament · grandiloquence · Asiatic · periodic sentence · decorum · elocution · florid · laconic · bombast
- figuresfigure of speech, figure, trope, simile, metaphor
- rhetoricpersuasion, oratory, argumentation, debate, public speaking
- figurative languagemetaphor, simile, figure of speech, analogy, personification
- expressionsexpression, I love you, phrase, idioms, thank you
rhetorical deviceplain speech
Unembellished verbal expression
plain language · plain English · direct speech · unvarnished truth · bare facts
rhetorical devicespontaneous speech
Unrehearsed verbal expression
rhetorical deviceliteral meaning
Exact, non-figurative interpretation
device, rhetoric, devices, rhetorical, rhetorician, rhetoricians, rhetorical question, rhetorical questions