word
Literary
apostrophe (literary)
uh-POS-truh-fee
əˈpɒstrəfiListen
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Syllable breakdown
apostrophe
Sounds like
Same pronunciation as the punctuation mark — 'uh-POS-truh-fee'.
Dictionary meaning
In rhetoric, addressing an absent, dead, or imaginary person or abstract quality as if present.
History and origin
Greek — 'apostrephein' (to turn away).
Examples
- O Captain! My Captain! — Whitman's apostrophe to the dead Abraham Lincoln.
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