Synecdoche (pronounced /sɪˈnɛkdəkiː/; from Greek synekdoche (συνεκδοχή), meaning “simultaneous understanding”) is a figure of speech[1] in which a term is used in one of the following ways:
- Part of something is used to refer to the whole thing (Pars pro toto), or
- A thing (a “whole”) is used to refer to part of it (Totum pro parte), or
- A specific class of thing is used to refer to a larger, more general class, or
- A general class of thing is used to refer to a smaller, more specific class, or
- A material is used to refer to an object composed of that material, or
- A container is used to refer to its contents.
Inspired by a pic from Moleitau.
