What Is Anadiplosis? | Definition & Examples
Anadiplosis is the repetition of a word or phrase at the end of a sentence and the beginning of the next. It is often used to emphasize an idea, to establish a link between thoughts, or to create a rhythmic effect. Because of this, we encounter anadiplosis in different contexts such as literature, speeches, and children’s storybooks.
Yoda, Star Wars Episode 1: The Phantom Menace
Anadiplosis definition
Anadiplosis is a figure of speech in which a word or phrase appears both at the end of one sentence or clause and at the beginning of the next. Anadiplosis is often used to build a logical progression of ideas and guide the reader or listener through them in a compelling and memorable way.
Some key characteristics of anadiplosis are:
- It can involve a single word or group of words
When a milestone is delayed, the project is delayed, and when the project is delayed, our customers are unhappy.
- It can occur in two clauses of the same sentence or across different sentences. Anadiplosis can also involve multiple repeated words in a string of sentences.
Kinetic energy is also known as the energy of motion. A vehicle’s energy of motion doubles when its weight doubles. When a vehicle’s weight doubles, it needs about twice the distance to stop.”
- The repetition occurs at or near the beginning of the next clause or sentence.
Jesse Jackson, 1988 Democratic National Convention
Anadiplosis examples
Anadiplosis is often combined with climax: an arrangement of words, phrases, or clauses in order of increasing importance, often in parallel structure.
Watch your words; they become actions.
Watch your actions; they become habits.
Watch your habits; they become character.
Watch your character; it becomes your destiny.”
proverb attributed to Lao Tzu
The Bible uses anadiplosis extensively to reinforce certain themes or ideas and set the solemn tone and rhythmic quality of the text.
(19) And the waters prevailed so mightily on the earth that all the high mountains under the whole heaven were covered.
Genesis 7:18–19 (ESV)
Anadiplosis is a powerful rhetorical device, and it is often used in speeches to link ideas in a way that builds momentum and enhances the emotional impact of the message.
Anadiplosis vs antimetabole vs chiasmus
Anadiplosis is similar to another figure of speech called antimetabole. In antimetabole, the same words or phrases are repeated in successive clauses or sentences, but in reverse order.
This means that all instances of antimetabole also contain anadiplosis. However, not all examples of anadiplosis involve antimetabole. The key difference is that in antimetabole, the order of several words must be reversed, while in anadiplosis, this is not a requirement.
| Example | Explanation |
|---|---|
| “I will arise and go now, and go to Innisfree […] And I shall have some peace there, for peace comes dropping slow, Dropping from the veils of the morning to where the cricket sings;”“The Lake Isle of Innisfree,”William Butler Yeats, |
This is an example of anadiplosis where the last word (go, peace, dropping) in a clause is repeated in the beginning of the next. |
| “All you need is love, love is all you need”
The Beatles |
This is anadiplosis because the word “love” is repeated at the end of one clause and the beginning of the next. It is also antimetabole because the same words are repeated in reverse order. |
Anadiplosis is also similar to chiasmus; however, chiasmus involves the repetition of ideas or grammatical structures in inverted order, without necessarily repeating words. For example, the line “Who dotes, yet doubts; suspects, yet strongly loves” from Othello contains a chiasmus: “dotes” and “strongly loves” mean the same thing, as do “doubts” and “suspects.”
Frequently asked questions about anadiplosis
- What is an example of anadiplosis?
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An example of anadiplosis is the line “When I give, I give myself” from “Song of Myself” by Walt Whitman. The word “give” is repeated at the end of one clause and the beginning of the next creating a rhythmic effect and underlying the concept of selflessness.
