Nerd Word of the Day archive

sih-NEK-duh-kee · noun

synecdoche

A figure of speech in which a part stands for a whole, or the whole for a part.

Where the word comes from

From Greek synekdokhē, “a receiving together,” from syn- (“together”) and ekdekhesthai (“to take up”).

In a sentence

“The newsroom used “all hands” to mean every person on the team.”

Check the word history

Merriam-Webster dictionary entry for synecdoche