aposiopetic
- adjective
- /ˌæpəˈsaɪəˌpɛtɪk/
- Literature
- His speech became aposiopetic when he reached the most emotional part of his story.
Examples
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The author's aposiopetic style left readers guessing what the character truly intended to say.
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Literary critics praised the novel's aposiopetic dialogue for its dramatic effect.
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Wow! That was an aposiopetic twist in the story!
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Her speech was so aposiopetic that the audience was left in suspense.
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His speech became aposiopetic when he reached the most emotional part, leaving the audience in suspense.
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Literary critics praised the novel for its aposiopetic dialogue, which effectively conveyed the characters' emotions.
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The author skillfully used aposiopetic moments to enhance the tension of the narrative.
How Abrupt
Surface Forms
Morphology
aposiopetic = aposiopesis (semi-transparent) = aposiopesis + etic
Formally built from the noun 'aposiopesis' plus the adjective-forming suffix -etic, a regular derivation, but both elements are rare technical terms that are unlikely to be known by average learners.
Etymology
The word aposiopetic comes from Greek parts apo- 'away' and siop- 'be silent'. So, something aposiopetic stops suddenly in speech, like a speaker who breaks off mid-sentence and leaves a dramatic 'silence'.