ekphrasis

Alternative forms

• ecphrasis

Etymology

From Ancient Greek ἔκφρασις (ékphrasis, “description”), from ἐκφράζω (ekphrázō, “I describe”), from ἐκ (ek, “out, ex-”) + φράζω (phrázō, “I explain, point out”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈɛkfɹəsɪs/

Noun

ekphrasis (plural ekphrases)

1. (rhetoric) A clear, intense, self-contained argument or verbal description of an object, especially of an artwork.

   • 2004: One [trope] is ekphrasis, the literary description of a work of art, the most famous example of which may be the careful depiction of the shield of Achilles in book 18 of the Iliad. — Daniel Donoghue, Old English Literature (Blackwell 2004, p. 75)