Zeugma is a figure of speech that is in the category of syntax or construction figures . That’s because it interferes with the syntactic construction of phrases.
It is used to omit terms in the sentence in order to avoid unnecessary repetition of some terms, such as the verb or the noun.
As such, it makes the language of the text more fluid. When used, the use of the comma becomes necessary.
Zeugma is used in the informal language, and is also used in several poetic and musical texts.
In the syntax zeugma other figures are: ellipse, hyperbaton (or reversal) silepse , asyndeton , polysyndeton , anaphora , anacoluthon and redundancy .
Examples
Check examples of literary and musical phrases in which zeugma was used:
- “ The school appeared in uniform; the board, wearing a coat . ” (Raul Pompeia)
- “ One of them wanted to know about my studies; another, a stamp collection. ”(José Lins do Rego).
- “ Life is a big game and destiny is a formidable partner. ”(Érico Veríssimo)
- “We will think of each girl / who lived in that window; / one who was called Arabela, / another who was called Carolina .” (Cecília Meireles)
- “ My father was from São Paulo / My grandfather, from Pernambuco / My great-grandfather, from Minas Gerais / My great-grandfather, from Bahia. ” (Chico Buarque)
Zeugma and Ellipse: Differences
Confusion is very common between the two syntax figures: zeugma and ellipse . However, they differ.
For many scholars of the subject, the zeugma is considered a type of ellipse , since it is also used by omitting one or more terms in the sentence.
The ellipse is the omission of one or more terms of speech that have not been expressed previously. But these are easily identifiable by the interlocutor (receiver). In zeugma, the terms have been mentioned before in the speech.
Check out the examples below:
- We look forward to the result. (through the verbal conjugation we can identify the omission of the pronoun “we”.) – ellipse
- Joaquim bought two pants, me one. (omission of the verb in the second sentence: bought). – zeugma
Curiosity
From the Greek, the term ” zeygma ” means “connection”.