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Definition of prosopopoeia  - 2 dictionary results

pro⋅so⋅po⋅poe⋅ia

  [proh-soh-puh-pee-uh]
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–noun Rhetoric.
1. personification, as of inanimate things.
2. a figure of speech in which an imaginary, absent, or deceased person is represented as speaking or acting.
Also, pro⋅so⋅po⋅pe⋅ia.

Origin:
1555–65; < L prosōpopoeia < Gk prosōpopoiía personification, equiv. to prósōpo(n) face, person + poi(eîn) to make + -ia -ia

Related forms:
pro⋅so⋅po⋅poe⋅ial, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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pro·so·po·pe·ia also pro·so·po·poe·ia   (prə-sō'pə-pē'ə)   
n.  

  1. A figure of speech in which an absent or imaginary person is represented as speaking.

  2. See personification.


[Latin prosōpopoeia, from Greek prosōpopoiiā : prosōpon, face, mask, dramatic character (pros-, pros- + ōpon, face from ōps, ōp-, eye; see okw- in Indo-European roots) + poiein, to make; see kwei-2 in Indo-European roots.]
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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