Meanings
nounhysteron proteron (plural hysteron proterons)
plural hysteron proterons
- rhetoricA figure of speech in which a phrase that should come last is put first; hysterology.
"He is well and lives" is a hysteron proteron.
Synonyms: hysterosis
Synonyms & antonyms
nounA figure of speech in which a phrase that should come last is put first; hysterology.
Similar
Also see
Origin
From Ancient Greek, from ὕστερον (hústeron, “latter, arriving late”) + πρότερον (próteron, “former, before”).
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
APA
hysteron proteron. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/hysteron%20proteron
MLA
“hysteron proteron.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/hysteron%20proteron. Accessed November 5, 2026.
Chicago
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “hysteron proteron,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/hysteron%20proteron.
Source: hysteron proteron on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.