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Hyperbole (/ h aɪ ˈ p ɜːr b əl i / ⓘ; adj. hyperbolic / ˌ h aɪ p ər ˈ b ɒ l ɪ k / ⓘ) is the use of exaggeration as a rhetorical device or figure of speech.In rhetoric, it is also sometimes known as auxesis (literally 'growth').
[4] An example of hyperbole is: "The bag weighed a ton." [5] Hyperbole makes the point that the bag was very heavy, though it probably does not weigh a ton. [6] Exaggerating is also a type of deception, [7] as well as a means of malingering – magnifying small injuries or discomforts as an excuse to avoid responsibilities. [8]
The sentence can be given as a grammatical puzzle [7] [8] [9] or an item on a test, [1] [2] for which one must find the proper punctuation to give it meaning. Hans Reichenbach used a similar sentence ("John where Jack had...") in his 1947 book Elements of Symbolic Logic as an exercise for the reader, to illustrate the different levels of language, namely object language and metalanguage.
For example, the phrase, "John, my best friend" uses the scheme known as apposition. Tropes (from Greek trepein, 'to turn') change the general meaning of words. An example of a trope is irony, which is the use of words to convey the opposite of their usual meaning ("For Brutus is an honorable man; / So are they all, all honorable men").
Colorless green ideas sleep furiously was composed by Noam Chomsky in his 1957 book Syntactic Structures as an example of a sentence that is grammatically well-formed, but semantically nonsensical. The sentence was originally used in his 1955 thesis The Logical Structure of Linguistic Theory and in his 1956 paper "Three Models for the ...
The mistaken identity (often of one twin for another) is a centuries-old comedic device used by Shakespeare in several of his works. The mistake can be either an intended act of deception or an accident. Modern examples include The Parent Trap; The Truth About Cats and Dogs; Sister, Sister; and the films of Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen.
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For example, riding the bus is a sufficient mode of transportation to get to work. But there are other modes of transportation – car, taxi, bicycle, walking – that can be used. Modal scope fallacy – a degree of unwarranted necessity is placed in the conclusion.