tmesis

[tuh-mee-sis]

noun

1. the interpolation of one or more words between the parts of a compound word, as be thou ware for beware.

tmesis

/ ˈmiːsɪs, təˈmiːsɪs /

noun

1. interpolation of a word or group of words between the parts of a compound word

Other Word Forms

• tmetic adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of tmesis¹

First recorded in 1580–90; from Late Latin tmēsis, from Greek tmêsis “a cutting,” equivalent to tmē- (variant stem of témnein “to cut”) + -sis -sis

Word History and Origins

Origin of tmesis¹

C16: via Latin from Greek, literally: a cutting, from temnein to cut

Example Sentences

What the grammarians called “tmesis,” the separation of the preposition from the verb with which it is compounded, is peculiar to Homer.

From Project Gutenberg

I could see that the figure called, I think, tmesis, or cutting, had been generously employed; the exuberances of the local correspondent had been pruned by a Fleet Street expert.

From Project Gutenberg

When accompanied by the preposition kita, "with," there is a tmesis of the preposition, and the pronouns are placed between its first and second syllable; e.g. vi, him''-ki-ni-ta, "with him."

From Project Gutenberg

The use of tmesis, asyndeton, anacoluthon, aposiopesis, hyperbaton, hyperbole, litotes, in Latin oratory and poetry.

From Project Gutenberg