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Meaning of periphrase | Babel Free

Noun CEFR B2
/ˈpɛɹi.fɹeɪz/

Definitions

The use of more words than are necessary to express the idea; a roundabout, or indirect, way of speaking; circumlocution.

countable, rhetoric, uncountable

Examples

“1821, Thomas De Quincey, John Paul Frederick Richter (published in London Magazine To describe all those on whom the fates of Troy hinged , by enigmatic periphrases”
“He held up the condition of the Church in the terrible mirror of his unflinching speech, which called things by their right names and dealt in no polite periphrases[…]”

CEFR level

B2
Upper Intermediate
This word is part of the CEFR B2 vocabulary — upper intermediate level.

See also

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