euphuism
- euphuism
-
/yooh"fyooh iz'euhm/, n.
1. an affected style in imitation of that of Lyly, fashionable in England about the end of the 16th century, characterized chiefly by long series of antitheses and frequent similes relating to mythological natural history, and alliteration. Cf.
Euphues.
2. any similar ornate style of writing or speaking; high-flown, periphrastic language.
[
1590-1600; EUPHU(ES) + -ISM]
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an elegant Elizabethan literary style marked by excessive use of balance,
antithesis, and
alliteration and by frequent use of similes (
simile) drawn from mythology and nature. The word is also used to denote artificial elegance. It was derived from the name of a character in the prose romances
Euphues: The Anatomy of Wit (1578) and
Euphues and his England (1580) by the English author John Lyly (
Lyly, John). Although the style soon fell out of fashion, it played an important role in the development of English prose. It appeared at a time of experimentation with prose styles, and it offered prose that was lighter and more fanciful than previous writing. The influence of euphuism can be seen in the works of such writers as Robert Greene and William Shakespeare, both of whom imitated the style in some works and parodied it in others.
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Universalium.
2010.
:
Look at other dictionaries:
Euphuism — is a mannered style of English prose, taking its name from works by John Lyly who, however, did not invent the term. It took the form of a preciously ornate and sophisticated style that employed a wide range of literary devices such as antitheses … Wikipedia
euphuism — eu phu*ism ([=u] f[ u]*[i^]z m), n. [Gr. e yfyh s well grown, graceful; e y^ well + fyh growth, fr. fy ein to grow. This affected style of conversation and writing, fashionable for some time in the court of Elizabeth, had its origin from the fame … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
euphuism — index fustian, rhetoric (insincere language) Burton s Legal Thesaurus. William C. Burton. 2006 … Law dictionary
euphuism — (not to be confused with euphemism: see the preceding entry) is an affected or high flown style of writing or speaking, originally applied to work of the late 16c and early 17c written in imitation of John Lyly s Euphues (pronounced yoo fyoo eez… … Modern English usage
euphuism — [yo͞o′fyo͞o iz΄əm] n. [< Euphues, fictitious character in two prose romances by John Lyly < Gr euphyēs, shapely, graceful < eu (see EU ) + phyē, growth < phyein, to grow (see BONDAGE) + ISM] 1. the artificial, affected, high flown… … English World dictionary
Euphuism — , GONGORISM Euphuism is an artificial literary style, popular in the Elizabethan and Jacobean periods. It derived its name from the name of the hero of two prose romances by John Lyly (1554 1606), Euphues: The Anatomy of Wit (1579) and his… … Dictionary of eponyms
euphuism — noun a) An ornate style of writing (in Elizabethan England) marked by the excessive use of alliteration, antithesis and mythological similes. b) An example of euphuism. See Also: euphui … Wiktionary
euphuism — noun Etymology: Euphues, character in prose romances by John Lyly Date: 1592 1. an elegant Elizabethan literary style marked by excessive use of balance, antithesis, and alliteration and by frequent use of similes drawn from mythology and nature… … New Collegiate Dictionary
euphuism — Synonyms and related words: Gongorism, affectation, affectedness, artfulness, artifice, artificiality, asiaticism, device, elegance, euphemism, exquisiteness, figurative language, figurativeness, figure, figure of speech, floridity, flourish,… … Moby Thesaurus
EUPHUISM — an affected bombastic style of language, so called from Euphues, a work of Sir John Lyly s written in that style … The Nuttall Encyclopaedia
