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euphuism - 4 dictionary results

eu⋅phu⋅ism

  [yoo-fyoo-iz-uhm]
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–noun
1. an affected style in imitation of that of Lyly, fashionable in England about the end of the 16th century, characterized chiefly by long series of antitheses and frequent similes relating to mythological natural history, and alliteration. Compare Euphues.
2. any similar ornate style of writing or speaking; high-flown, periphrastic language.
Origin:
1590–1600; Euphu(es) + -ism

Related forms:
eu⋅phu⋅ist, noun
eu⋅phu⋅is⋅tic, eu⋅phu⋅is⋅ti⋅cal, adjective
eu⋅phu⋅is⋅ti⋅cal⋅ly, adverb
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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eu·phu·ism   (yōō'fyōō-ĭz'əm)   
n.  
  1. An affectedly elegant literary style of the late 16th and early 17th centuries, characterized by elaborate alliteration, antitheses, and similes.
  2. Affected elegance of language.

[After Euphues, a character in Euphues, the Anatomy of Wit and Euphues and his England by John Lyly, from Greek euphuēs, shapely : eu-, eu- + phuein, to grow, bring forth; see bheuə- in Indo-European roots.]
eu'phu·ist n., eu'phu·is'tic, eu'phu·is'ti·cal adj., eu'phu·is'ti·cal·ly adv.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Euphuism

Eu"phu*ism\, n. [Gr. ? well grown, graceful; ? well + ? growth, fr. ? to grow. This affected style of conversation and writing, fashionable for some time in the court of Elizabeth, had its origin from the fame of Lyly's books, "Euphues, or the Anatomy of Wit," and "Euphues and his England."] (Rhet.) An affectation of excessive elegance and refinement of language; high-flown diction.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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euphuism

an elegant Elizabethan literary style marked by excessive use of balance, antithesis, and alliteration and by frequent use of similes drawn from mythology and nature. The word is also used to denote artificial elegance. It was derived from the name of a character in the prose romances Euphues: The Anatomy of Wit (1578) and Euphues and his England (1580) by the English author John Lyly. Although the style soon fell out of fashion, it played an important role in the development of English prose. It appeared at a time of experimentation with prose styles, and it offered prose that was lighter and more fanciful than previous writing. The influence of euphuism can be seen in the works of such writers as Robert Greene and William Shakespeare, both of whom imitated the style in some works and parodied it in others

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Encyclopedia Britannica, 2008. Encyclopedia Britannica Online.
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