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Revision as of 08:26, 21 January 2006 by 24.255.13.221 (talk) (→Examples)(diff) ← Previous revision | Latest revision (diff) | Newer revision → (diff)An oxymoron (plural "oxymora" or "oxymorons") (noun) is a figure of speech that combines two normally contradictory terms (e.g. "deafening silence"). Oxymoron is a Greek term derived from oxy ("sharp") and moros ("dull"). Oxymora are a proper subset of the expressions called contradiction in terms. What distinguishes oxymora from other paradoxes and contradictions is that they are used intentionally, for rhetorical effect, and the contradiction is only apparent, as the combination of terms provides a novel expression of some concept.
The most common form of oxymoron involves an adjective–noun combination. For example, the following line from Tennyson's Idylls of the King contains two oxymora:
- "And faith unfaithful kept him falsely true"
See also
- List of oxymora
- Grammar
- Language
- Linguistics
- Rhetoric
- Logic
- English language
- English usage
- Fowler's Modern English Usage
- Figure of Speech
- Contradiction
- Inconsistency
- Juxtaposition
- Demagoguery
- Pleonasm