elegy a poem or expression of lament, usually for the dead.
eloquence the fluent, persuasive use of language; expressiveness.
embolalia inserting useless words or utterances into speech to stall for time while collecting one's thoughts, such as "uh, you know, like, I mean, you know."
enallage improper use of tense, mood, or gender, for example, calling a herd of cows a herd of cow, or calling a woman a guy.
enunciate to pronounce words clearly and correctly.
epistolary written in the style of a letter or letters, as some novels.
epithet word or term that characterizes a person or thing. Also, an adjective or descriptive word that forms part of a name, as in Richard the Lion- Hearted.
eponym a person from whom a place or thing is named, as in Washington, Addison's disease, Phillips screwdriver.
equivocate to speak ambiguously in order to confuse or mislead.
esprit de l'escalier the witty comment or snappy reply you wish you had said to someone earlier if you had only thought of it, literally; wit from the staircase.
etymology the origin and development of words; the derivation of words.
etymon the root or earliest form of a word, as a foreign word from which an English word is derived. A word's original meaning.
euphemism a substitution of an offensive word or phrase with a more acceptable one, as in "passed on" for died.
eusystolism the substituting of initials for complete words, as a form of euphemism, as in "S.O.B." "B.S."
exemplum a short story or anecdote given to illustrate a moral.
exonym the foreign-language spelling of a native geographical name.
exposition a presentation of explanatory information, as distinguished from narrative or description.
expressionist of a style of prose characterized by the use of symbolism and surrealism.
extemporaneous performed with little or no preparation, as an impromptu speech.
extrapolate to make an inference beyond the known facts; to surmise.
eyewash flattering or misleading talk.
facetiae humorous or ribald writings, anecdotes, sayings.
faction nonfiction presented in the style of fiction.
faux pas a socially unacceptable or embarrassing remark; literally, false step.
felicity any apt choice of words.
Freudian slip a slip of the tongue that inadvertently reveals what's on the mind of the speaker.
fused metaphor the incorrect joining of two metaphors; for example, "my monkey to bear" (my cross to bear; a monkey on my back).
fustian pompous or pretentious speech or writing.
Gallicism an English word or phrase derived from French.
glib speaking easily and fluently but superficially, smugly, or insincerely.
grammatism being overly concerned about the proper use of grammar.
hack a writer more concerned with making a buck than creating fine art; one whose writing is trite.
hackneyed trite, cliched, unoriginal, banal.
heterography inconsistent spelling usage, as in letters that are pronounced differently in different words, like the g in "good" and "geriatric," or the c in "car" and "cite."
heteronym a word having the same spelling as another but with a completely different meaning and pronunciation, as in "bass" (fish) and "bass" (drum) or "bow" (ribbon) and "bow" (boat).
heterophemy the inadvertent or incorrect use of a word that is similar in spelling or pronunciation to another word, such as "cinnamon" for synonym. Also, the use of a euphemism with a pregnant pause, as in "the president is . . . indisposed . . . if you know what I mean."
Hispanicism a Spanish word used in English, such as jalapeno, machismo.
hobbyhorse a pet topic or argument.
Hobson-Jobson the alteration of a foreign word into English, for example, "compound" from the
Malay "kampong," or "grouper" from the Portuguese "garoupa."
homograph a word identical in spelling with another word but having a different pronunciation, as in "bass" (fish) and "bass" (drum).
homonym a word spelled and pronounced the same as another word but having a different meaning, for example, "bow" (ship) and "bow" (down).
homonym slip the incorrect writing of one word for another with the same or nearly the same pronunciation, for example, "too" for "two," or "then" for "than."
homophone a word pronounced the same as another but having a different spelling and meaning, such as "peace," and "piece."
hybrid the joining of two words or word elements from two languages to form a new word.
hyperbole an exaggeration used as a figure of speech, such as "I could eat a horse," or "this hangnail is killing me."
hyperurbanism the inaccurate imitation of upper- class speech by someone with a lower-class dialect.
hypophora reasoning with oneself out loud.
ideogram a character or symbol, such as $, , or #. Also, any character used in Chinese writing.
idiolect the unique language of an individual.
idiologism a quirk or characteristic of an individual's speech.
idiom a particular form of speech within a language, as used in a specific community or group. Also, words, phrases, and expressions that cannot be translated literally into a foreign language, such as "life's a bitch," or "join the rat race."
idioticon a dictionary of dialect.
inarticulate unexpressive; unable to speak fluently or persuasively.
innuendo a subtle implication or allusion, usually of something negative.
inversion the altering or reversal of normal word order for effect, for example, "through the grass we did run." irony the use of words to convey the opposite of their literal meaning, especially in a sarcastic or humorous way, for example, "his wit was as sharp as a wet sponge."
Janus word a word having two meanings the exact opposite of each other, such as "inflammable," or "cleave."
jargon meaningless gibberish; the special language of a class, profession, or group.
jawbreaker a word that is difficult to pronounce.
je ne sais quoi literally, I don't know what; a certain indescribable something.
King's English normal or proper, understandable English.
laconic terse; reserved.
lallation any noise or utterance typical of a baby.
lapsus calami a slip of the pen.
lapsus linguae a slip of the tongue.
Latinism a Latin word or phrase used in English.
leading question a question designed to prompt a desired answer.
legalese legal jargon.
lethologica the inability to recall a word that is on the tip of one's tongue.
lethonomania forgetting names.
lexicography the compiling and writing of dictionaries and word books.
lexicology the study of word histories, derivations, meanings, and similar pursuits.
lexicon a dictionary, vocabulary book, foreign language word book, or similar publication.