Meaning & use
Prosopopoeia
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A rhetorical device in which an absent, imaginary, or inanimate thing is represented as speaking or acting.
See it in a sentence
The poem's prosopopoeia gives voice to the river as it complains about pollution.
Personifying Death as a character who speaks is a classic use of prosopopoeia.
A note on using this word
The term derives from Greek roots meaning "to make a face" or "person," and is essentially a more technical synonym for personification used in classical rhetoric.
Words with a similar meaning
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