pleonasm

Definition

Redundancy in wording.

Etymology

Learned borrowing from Late Latin pleonasmus, from Ancient Greek πλεονασμός (pleonasmós), from πλεονάζω (pleonázō, “to be superfluous”), from πλείων (pleíōn, “more”).

Example Sentences

• "St. Jerome and St. Augustine are both sparing in the employment of the device of pleonasm."
• "Indeed, pleonasm, the use of superfluous or redundant words, is only part of the broader features of that style, the expressions of which have been so thoroughly analyzed by Franz Neirynck² and which for convenience will here be referred to as "dualisms.""
• "My salvation is in my Saviour who saveth me hence the redundancy and pleonasm of my asseveration."

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