GRAMMARIAN ~ Synecdoche

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Synecdoche

/sɪnˈɛkdəkɪ/

A synecdoche is a figure of speech in which a part of a thing refers to a whole thing.

For example, the word heels is used to refer to high-heeled shoes, voices refer to people, silverware is used to refer to all kinds of cutlery, and the word boots is used to refer to a soldier.

Synecdoche is an important literary device writers use to create vivid and memorable images in readers’ minds, to elevate the language and make it more poetic, to create a strong voice, to preserve rhythm or to pack a lot of meaning into a word or two.

Examples of synecdoche in literature:

“I Heard a Fly Buzz – When I Died” by Emily Dickinson

“The Eyes around – had wrung them dry-
And Breaths were gathering firm
For that last Onset – when the King
Be witnessed – in the Room -“

The eyes here refer to the people in the room.

‘Ozymandias’ by Percy Bysshe Shelley

“They survive, stamped upon these lifeless things, by the hand which made them.”

The ‘hand’ here is the sculptor who made those statues.

“The Rime of the Ancient Mariner” by Samuel Taylor Coleridge

The western wave was all a-flame.
The day was well nigh done!
Almost upon the western wave
Rested the broad bright Sun.

The western wave refers to the ocean extending to the horizon in the west.

Use a synecdoche in your own work. Post the link in the comments. Inspire us with your creativity!

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