hyperbaton

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/haɪˈpɜːbətɒn/

noun

An inversion of the usual or logical order of words or phrases, for emphasis or poetic effect.

Similar
anastropheinversion
OriginLatin hyperbaton ← Ancient Greek ὑπερβατόν →
Scrabble 20
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Meanings

nounhyperbaton (plural hyperbatons or hyperbata)

plural hyperbatons · plural hyperbata

  1. grammarAn inversion of the usual or logical order of words or phrases, for emphasis or poetic effect.
    1 more example

    In real life we often see a man under the influence of rage, or fear, […] begin a sentence, and then swerve aside into some inconsequent parenthesis, and then again double back to his original statement […]Now the figure hyperbaton is the means which is employed by the best writers to imitate these signs of natural emotion.

    c. 100, Longinus, chapter XXII, in H. L. Havell, transl., On the Sublime, published 1890

    Synonyms: anastrophe, inversion

  2. rhetoricAdding a word or thought to a sentence that is already semantically complete, thus drawing emphasis to the addition.

Synonyms & antonyms

nounAn inversion of the usual or logical order of words or phrases, for emphasis or poetic effect.

Similar
anastropheinversion
Also see
anastropheinversion

Origin

  1. Ancient Greekὑπερβατόν“overstepping”
  2. Latinhyperbaton
  3. Englishhyperbaton

Borrowed from Latin hyperbaton, itself a borrowing from Ancient Greek ὑπερβατόν (huperbatón, “overstepping”), from ὑπερβαίνω (huperbaínō), from ὑπέρ (hupér) + βαίνω (baínō, “walk”).

More words from Latin, Ancient Greek

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Catalan hipèrbaton
  • hipèrbatongrammar
Dutch hyperbaton
  • hyperbatongrammar
Esperanto hiperbato
  • hiperbatogrammar
French hyperbate
  • hyperbategrammar
German Hyperbaton
  • Hyperbatongrammar
Greek υπερβατό
  • υπερβατό (ypervató)grammar
Italian iperbato
  • iperbatogrammar
Japanese 転置法
  • 転置法grammar
Latin hyperbaton
  • hyperbatongrammar
Polish hiperbaton
  • hiperbatongrammar
Portuguese hipérbato
  • hipérbatogrammar
Russian гипербатон
  • гипербатон (giperbaton)grammar
Spanish hipérbaton, hipérbato
  • hipérbatongrammar
  • hipérbatogrammar
Cite this entry
APA

hyperbaton. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/hyperbaton

MLA

“hyperbaton.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/hyperbaton. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “hyperbaton,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/hyperbaton.

Source: hyperbaton on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.