| trope |
| Definition: A figure of speech where the speaker uses a word in a way that is different from its expected meaning. Note: Irony and metaphor are types of tropes. |
| Example: He has a "special" kind of wisdom [i.e., he is not wise]. |
| Etymology: The word derives from the Latin tropus, a figure of speech (from the Greek tropein, to turn). |
| Oxford English Dictionary: The first OED citation for the word is from 1533: "If ye be so sworne to the litteral sense in this matter, that ye will not in these wordes of Christe, Thys is my bodye, &c., admitte in so playne a speache anye troope."
(Tindale, Supper of Lord Cv) |