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high-flown diction

Device
Pronunciation

Understanding ARPABET Pronunciation

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The pronunciation guide uses the ARPABET phonetic system—the same system used in speech recognition and text-to-speech applications.

Vowel Examples:
AE1 = cat, bat
EH1 = bed, head
IY1 = see, me
OW1 = go, boat
UW1 = boot, do
Stress Numbers:
0 = no stress (unstressed)
1 = primary stress (loud)
2 = secondary stress (medium)
Example:
AH0 TH IY1 N AH0
= a-THEE-na (Athena)

The stressed syllable (marked with 1) is pronounced louder and clearer than others.

Quick Definition

Ornate, lofty diction marked by elaborate phrasing and rhetorical flourish, often bordering on the excessive or artificial.

Detailed Definition
High-flown diction describes elevated, ornate, or archaic language marked by Latinate vocabulary, elaborate syntax, and grandiose imagery; often employed in epic, panegyric, or sublime poetry to convey heroism, transcendence, or cosmic themes, it risks pomposity if unearned but achieves power when matched to subject matter of genuine magnitude or spiritual intensity.
Example
Example in poetry:
High-flown diction uses elevated, ornate language: Milton’s “hither and thither” in “Paradise Lost”; Spenser’s archaic inversions in “The Faerie Queene”; Shelley’s “Ode to the West Wind” (“O wild West Wind, thou breath of Autumn’s being!”); contemporary examples include A.E. Stallings’ mythological register; Hart Crane’s baroque syntax in “The Bridge.”
Additional Notes
Language characterized by overly ornate, formal, or pompous words and phrases; often used deliberately for satirical effect, or, when used poorly, can obscure meaning and make the poem feel pretentious.
Also Known As
lofty diction elevated style ornate expression grandiloquent speech Bombast
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