| 词汇 | oxymoron |
| 词源 | oxymoron. Deriving from the Greek for “pointedly foolish,” an oxymoron is a figure of speech in which incongruous and apparently contradictory words are combined for a special rhe- torical effect by paradoxical means. A well-known example is Tennyson’s “Lancelot and Elaine”: The shackles of an old love straiten’d him His honour rooted in dishonour stood, and faith unfaithful kept him falsely true. Many famous English writers have used this device. Other oxy- mora include the phrase an eloquent silence and the word soph- omore, which derives from two Greek words meaning “wise” and “foolish.” |
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