Definition, Meaning & Synonyms
pleon
noun
ˈplē-ən
Definition
A term used in linguistics to denote redundancy in language, often where more words or elements are used than necessary to convey a meaning.
Examples
- When the author wrote, ‘He made a slight movement with his hand,’ it was a pleonasm because ‘slight’ and ‘movement’ imply the same idea.
- The phrase ‘free gift’ is often considered a pleon because a gift is inherently free.
Meaning
It refers specifically to excessive or superfluous use of words in speech or writing, which does not add value to the message being communicated.
Synonyms
- redundancy
- superfluity
- unnecessariness
