Standard Lemma guide

catachresis

noun · 4 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • Received-Pronunciation: /ˌkæt.əˈkɹiː.sɪs/
  • Southern-England: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.

1

noun

Meaning 1

Either of two types of misuse of a word or misapplication of a concept.

A misuse of a word; an application of a term to something which it does not properly denote.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, uncountable

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

Either of two types of misuse of a word or misapplication of a concept.

A misuse of a word; an application of a term to something which it does not properly denote.

Such a misuse involving some similarity of sound between the misused word and the appropriate word.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, especially, often, uncountable

Examples

  • Near-synonym: malapropism (precisely hyponymous, in which sense only absurd and laughable catachreses are malapropisms)

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: malapropism[Appendix:Glossary

Antonyms: none provided

3

noun

Meaning 3

Either of two types of misuse of a word or misapplication of a concept.

A misapplication or overextension of a figurative or analogical description; a wrongly applied metaphor or trope.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: countable, rhetoric, uncountable

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: abusio

Antonyms: none provided

4

noun

Meaning 4

strained or paradoxical use of words either in error (as `blatant' to mean `flagrant') or deliberately (as in a mixed metaphor: `blind mouths')

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: rhetorical device

History

Etymology

Learned borrowing from Latin catachrēsis, borrowed from Ancient Greek κατάχρησις (katákhrēsis, “misuse (of a word)”).

Across languages

Translations

25 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Catalan: catacresi — misuse of a word
  • Chinese Mandarin: 訛轉 /讹转 (ézhuǎn) — misuse of a word
  • Esperanto: katakrezo — misuse of a word
  • Finnish: (sanan) väärä käyttö — misuse of a word
  • French: catachrèse — misuse of a word
  • Japanese: 濫喩 (ranyu) — misuse of a word
  • Latin: catachresis — misuse of a word
  • Norwegian: katakrese — misuse of a word
  • Occitan: catacrèsi — misuse of a word
  • Polish: katachreza — misuse of a word
  • Portuguese: catacrese — misuse of a word
  • Russian: катахре́за (kataxréza) — misuse of a word
  • Sicilian: catàcrisi — misuse of a word
  • Sicilian: catacrisi — misuse of a word
  • Spanish: impropiedad léxica — misuse of a word
  • Swedish: katakres — misuse of a word
  • Finnish: katakreesi — (rhetoric) bad metaphor or trope
  • French: catachrèse — (rhetoric) bad metaphor or trope
  • German: Katachrese — (rhetoric) bad metaphor or trope
  • Italian: catacresi — (rhetoric) bad metaphor or trope
  • Occitan: catacrèsi — (rhetoric) bad metaphor or trope
  • Polish: katachreza — (rhetoric) bad metaphor or trope
  • Portuguese: catacrese — (rhetoric) bad metaphor or trope
  • Russian: катахре́за (kataxréza) — (rhetoric) bad metaphor or trope
  • Spanish: catacresis — (rhetoric) bad metaphor or trope