Nerd Word of the Day archive

an-uh-kuh-LOO-thon · noun

anacoluthon

A sudden change in grammatical construction that leaves a sentence unfinished or shifts its structure.

Where the word comes from

From Greek anakolouthon, “not following,” from an- (“not”) and akolouthos (“following”).

In a sentence

““If you think I’m going to—well, never mind,” is an everyday anacoluthon.”

Check the word history

Merriam-Webster dictionary entry for anacoluthon