anaphora

English

WOTD – 27 February 2006

From Ancient Greek ἀναφορά (anaphorá, “a carrying back”), from ἀνά (aná, “up”) + φέρω (phérō, “I carry”).

anaphora (countable and uncountable, plural anaphoras or anaphors or anaphora)

Examples (rhetoric)
They didn't speak. They didn't stand. They didn't even look up when I came in. “Mad world! Mad kings! Mad composition!” Shakespeare, King John (II i.)

Examples (expression referring to a preceding expression)
That's John's car. He [referring to "John"] won't want to see you sitting on it [referring to the car]. John had a drink. So did [referring to "had a drink"] Mark. John had been feeling rather dehydrated. Mark was even more so [referring to "dehydrated"].

(rhetoric) The repetition of a phrase at the beginning of phrases, sentences, or verses, used for emphasis.
Antonyms: epiphora, epistrophe
- [1835, L[arret] Langley, A Manual of the Figures of Rhetoric, […], Doncaster: Printed by C. White, Baxter-Gate, →OCLC, page 73:
  Anaphora elegantly begins
  With the same word or phrase successive lines.]
(linguistics) An expression that refers to a preceding expression.
Antonym: cataphora

Hypernym: endophora

Coordinate terms: exophora, homophora
(Can we verify⁽⁺⁾ this sense?) (linguistics) An expression that can refer to virtually any referent, the specific referent being defined by context.
- 1996, Barbara A. Fox, editor, Studies in Anaphora:
  The contributions to this volume represent the "next generation" of studies in anaphora – defined broadly as those morpho-syntactic forms available to speakers for formulating reference – taking as their starting point the foundation of research done in the 1980s.
(Christianity) The most solemn part of the Divine Liturgy or the Mass during which the offerings of bread and wine are consecrated as body and blood of Christ.
Synonym: Eucharistic Prayer

Meronyms: epiclesis, preface, Sanctus, sursum corda

In linguistics, the terms anaphor and anaphora are sometimes used interchangeably, although in some theories, a distinction is made between them. See the Wikipedia article.

repetition of a phrase used for emphasis

linguistics: An expression that can refer to virtually any referent

linguistics: expression that refers to another expression

Christianity

anaphora