'paralepsy' definitions:

Definition of 'paralepsy'

From: GCIDE
  • Paraleipsis \Par`a*leip"sis\, n. [NL., fr. Gr. ?, fr. ? to leave on one side, to omit; para` beside + ? to leave.] (Rhet.) A pretended or apparent omission; a figure by which a speaker artfully pretends to pass by what he really mentions; as, for example, if an orator should say, "I do not speak of my adversary's scandalous venality and rapacity, his brutal conduct, his treachery and malice." [Written also paralepsis, paralepsy, paralipsis.] [1913 Webster]

Words containing 'paralepsy'