Meaning & use

isocolon

noun·Advanced

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A rhetorical device in which two or more phrases or clauses have similar length and grammatical structure, placed side by side.

See it in a sentence

'Veni, vidi, vici' — 'I came, I saw, I conquered' — is a classic example of isocolon.

The speechwriter used isocolon throughout the address to give the sentences a rhythmic, balanced feel.

A note on using this word

Isocolon creates a sense of balance and memorability in writing and speech, and is common in slogans, oratory, and poetry.

Words with a similar meaning

parallelism

Choose a synonym to suit the sentence. Meanings can overlap without being identical.

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