More figures of speech

2. Figures Involving Addition (words or meaning inserted)
a. Affecting words (grammar or sentence structure)
Epizeuxis – duplication; repetition of the same word in a sentence.
Isaiah 40:1, “Comfort, comfort my people…” John 1:51 (KJV), “Verily, verily I say unto you…” Translated in the NIV as “I tell you the truth.”
Anaphora – like sentence beginnings; repetition of the same word at the beginning of successive sentences.
Matthew 5:3-11, “Blessed are the poor…Blessed are those who mourn…Blessed are the meek…”
Polysyndeton – many ands; repetition of the word “and.”
Acts 1:8, “…and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”
Paradiastole – neithers and nors; repetition of neither or nor.
Romans 8:38 and 39, “For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God…”

See you again,

Different figures of speech

Examples of Figures of Speech


1. Figures Involving Omission (words or meaning left out)

a. Affecting words (grammar or sentence structure)

Ellipsis – words are left out.
Matthew 11:18, “For John came neither eating nor drinking.” Being human, John had to eat and drink. What is left out is “declining invitations to eat with others.”

b. Affecting the sense (the meaning)

Tapeinosis – lessening, demeaning or understatement
Acts 5:36, “Some time ago Theudas appeared, claiming to be somebody…” meaning “someone great.” Antenantiosis – meaning “opposite.” Psalm 84:11, “No good thing does He withhold from those whose walk is blameless,” meaning He will give him every good thing.

What are the various kinds of figures of speech?

The study of figures of speech is complex because of the number of languages (Hebrew, Greek, Aramaic and English) involved, and because each language has many figures.

But the patterns of language are so universally common to mankind that most of the figures of speech cross over from language to language in a recognizable way.

Various scholars through the centuries have offered systems of classifying figures of speech. The clearest and best documented is by E. W. Bullinger, as follows:

1. Figures Involving Omission (words or meaning left out)
a. Affecting words (grammar or sentence structure)
b. Affecting the sense (the meaning)
2. Figures Involving Addition (words or meaning inserted)
a. Affecting words (grammar or sentence structure)
b. Affecting the sense (the meaning)
3. Figures Involving Change (words or meaning changed)
a. Affecting the meaning
b. Affecting the order of words
c. Affecting the application of words (interpretation of words)

Until next time, God bless

Figures of speech

How can we recognize figures of speech?

The words don’t make sense literally.

1 Corinthians 11:16-21, Paul calls himself a fool. He isn’t one, but is using the figure “sarcasm.”

Isaiah 55:12, “the trees will clap their hands.” Trees don’t have hands and don’t clap. The figure is personification.

The words are clear and literal, but meant to convey a deeper lesson or application, such as in a parable.

The words are clear and literal, but are put together in a grammatical or structural way that brings emphasis to the section. This kind of figure may be lost in translation.

Genesis 2:17, “you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die.” The Hebrew reads, “dying you will die,” using the figure “many inflections,” that is the same word in different forms.

Ephesians 3:18, “to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ.” The “and’s” is the figure “Many ands” and gives separate emphasis to each part, more than a comma would.

Until next time, God bless