An inversion of the order of words or phrases, when repeated or subsequently referred to in a sentence
an inversion of the second of two parallel phrases; an inverted relationship between the syntactic elements of parallel phrases; e.g., "Men do not quit playing because they grow old; they grow old because they quit playing" (Oliver Wendell Holmes).
(COD 8) inversion in the second of two parallel phrases of the order followed in the first (eg. to stop too fearful and too faint to go)
an expression of two parts in which the elements of the second are reversed. So called because the similar elements CROSS between the two parts. Example: Jason said little and knew much; Phil knew nothing and spoke at length.
"is a sequence of two phrases or clauses which are parallel in syntax, but with a reversal in the order of the corresponding words" (Abrams 162).
a Hebrew literary form in which words or phrases are repeated in reverse order (e
a pattern of words or ideas stated once, then stated again but in reverse order
a verbal construct consisting of two parallel parts
Figure of speech where the second half of a phrase reverses the order of the first half e.g. Samuel Johnson's "For we that live to please, must please to live."
(adj. chiastic) A literary device in which, for emphasis, the second part of a text is parallel to the first, but in reverse, for example, ABBA, ABCBA.
A sequence of two phrases or clauses which are parallel in syntax, but reverse in the order of corresponding words. See Also ANTIMETABOLE. Example: “Ask not what your country can do for you; Ask what you can do for your country” is a chiasmus.“Poetry is the record of the best and happiest moments of the happiest and best minds” (Shelly – “Defence of Poetry”) is also an example of a chiasmus.
A term from classical rhetoric that describes a situation in which you introduce subjects in the order A, B, C, and then talk about them in the order C, B, A.
In rhetoric, chiasmus is the figure of speech in which two clauses are related to each other through a reversal of structures in order to make a larger point; that is, the two clauses display inverted parallelism. Chiasmus was particularly popular in Latin literature, where it was used to articulate balance or order within a text.