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Dec 7, 2010
This week's themeWhat to avoid when using words This week's words pleonasm apophasis sesquipedality periphrasis paralipsis Missed a word? Check the archives chronological alphabetical plaintext or search the site 
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A.Word.A.Day
with Anu Gargapophasis
PRONUNCIATION:
(uh-POF-uh-sis)
MEANING:
noun:
Allusion to something by denying it will be said.
ETYMOLOGY:
Via Latin from Greek apophanai (to say no), from apo- (away from) + phanai
(to say). Ultimately from the Indo-European root bha- (to speak) that is also
the source of fable, phone, fame, boon, and infant. First recorded use: 1657.
USAGE:
"There is almost no complaint that Ralph Nader and Dear Abby won't listen
to, but I don't remember either of them ever tried to do anything about
a dangling participle or a badly mixed metaphor, not to mention damnable
apophasis."Jack Smith; Hey, Watch That Language!; Milwaukee Journal (Wisconsin); Nov 11, 1974. "It's an Afghan apophasis. By claiming he does not want to participate in a political process that is hopelessly overrun with corruption, Abdullah is acknowledging just the opposite -- that he very much wants power and influence in the Afghan political realm." Teddy Minch; Well Now What?; The Tufts Daily (Medford, Massachusetts); Nov 4, 2009. See more usage examples of apophasis in Vocabulary.com's dictionary. A THOUGHT FOR TODAY:
Would the boy you were be proud of the man you are? -Laurence J. Peter, educator and author (1919-1990)
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