Merism
/ˈmɛrɪzəm/noun
A rhetorical device that expresses a whole by naming contrasting or representative parts of it.
Did you know?Merism appears in biblical and poetic language, where pairs such as “flesh and blood” or “heaven and earth” evoke an entire reality without naming it directly.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*mer-
“To divide, share, or portion out”
Ancient Greek
Greek
μέρος (meros)
“A part, portion, or share”
Ancient Greek
Greek
μερισμός (merismos)
“Division into parts; distribution”
Late Antiquity
Late Greek
μερισμός (merismos)
“Division or distribution; a division into rhetorical parts”
19th Century
English
merism
“A rhetorical figure expressing a whole through its constituent or contrasting parts”
Modern English
English
merism
“A figure of speech in which a totality is represented by naming some or opposing parts”