| paralipsis |
| Definition: A figure of speech where you bring up a subject by denying that you're bringing it up. |
| Example: She's extremely intelligent, not to mention beautiful. |
| Etymology: The word means "passing by omission" in Greek. |
| Oxford English Dictionary: The first OED citation is from 1842: "Paraleipsis, in Rhetoric, the artificially exhibited omission or slight mention of some important point, in order to impress the hearers with indignation, pity, etc."
(Brande Dict. Sci., etc.) |