ekphrasis

English

Wikipedia

Alternative forms

• ecphrasis

Etymology

From Ancient Greek ἔκφρασις (ekphrasis, “description”), from ἐκφράζω (ekphrazō, “I describe”), from ἐκ (ek, “out, ex-”) + φράζω (phrazō, “I explain, point out”).

Pronunciation

• IPA: /ˈɛkfrəsɪs/

Noun

ekphrasis (plural ekphrases)

1. (rhetoric) A clear, intense, self-contained argument or pictorial description of an object, especially of an artwork.

   • 2004: One [trope] is ekphrasis, the literary description of a work of art, the most famous example of which may be the careful depiction of the shield of Achilles in book 18 of the Iliad. — Daniel Donoghue, Old English Literature (Blackwell 2004, p. 75)

Translations

description of an object or artwork

• Danish: ekfrase (da) c

• Swedish: ekfras (sv) c