Synecdoche

2 definitions found

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  Synecdoche \Syn*ec"do*che\ (s[i^]n*[e^]k"d[-o]*k[-e]), n. [L.
     synecdoche, Gr. synekdochh`, fr. to receive jointly; sy`n
     with + ? to receive; ? out + ? to receive.] (Rhet.)
     A figure or trope by which a part of a thing is put for the
     whole (as, fifty sail for fifty ships), or the whole for a
     part (as, the smiling year for spring), the species for the


     genus (as, cutthroat for assassin), the genus for the species
     (as, a creature for a man), the name of the material for the
     thing made, etc. --Bain.
     [1913 Webster]

From WordNet (r) 2.0 [wn]:

  synecdoche
       n : substituting a more inclusive term for a less inclusive one
           or vice versa