chiasmus
NounOpen English WordNet
Noun (1)chiasmi
- inversion in the second of two parallel phrasesType of rhetorical device
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Webster's Dictionary (1913)
Chi·as′mus (kī-ăz′mŭs), noun
Origin: NL., fr. Gr. χιασμός a placing crosswise, fr. χιάζειν. See Chiasm.
Rhetoric An inversion of the order of words or phrases, when repeated or subsequently referred to in a sentence; thus,
If e'er to bless thy sons My voice or hands deny, These hands let useful skill forsake, This voice in silence die.— Dwight.
Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913), from GCIDE 0.54