merism

M3E1R1I1S1M3
/ˈmɛrɪz(ə)m/

noun

A reference to something by its polar extremes, as in "we searched high and low".

OriginAncient Greek μερισμός →
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Meanings

nounmerism (countable and uncountable, plural merisms)

plural merisms

  1. countablerhetoricuncountableliteratureA reference to something by its polar extremes, as in "we searched high and low".
  2. countablerhetoricuncountableliteratureA reference to something by a list of its parts.

Origin

  1. Ancient Greekμερισμός
  2. Englishmerism

From Ancient Greek μερισμός (merismós). Compare μέρος (méros, “part”).

More words from Ancient Greek

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

French mérisme
  • mérismeenumeration
Hungarian merizmus
  • merizmusenumeration

Rhymes & wordplay

Anagrams

simmer
Cite this entry
APA

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

MLA

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

Chicago

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

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