Home › Glossary › Letter P

Palilogy

Device
Pronunciation

Understanding ARPABET Pronunciation

Want to hear it? Click the Listen button to hear the browser speak the word using text-to-speech!

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

Repetition of a word or phrase for emphasis without intervening words

Detailed Definition
Palilogy is a rhetorical device involving immediate repetition of a word or phrase for emphasis or emotional intensity—e.g., “Never, never, never give up”—common in poetic invocations, laments, or climactic moments to heighten urgency, insistence, or dramatic weight through sonic insistence.
Example
Example in poetry:
Palilogy in Whitman’s “Song of Myself” (“I celebrate myself, and sing myself”); biblical repetition (“Holy, holy, holy”); palilogy in Ginsberg’s “Howl” (“who poverty and tatters and hollow-eyed and high…”); modern example: Claudia Rankine’s repeated “You are in the dark”
Additional Notes
Deliberate repetition of words or phrases for emphasis. Related to anaphora but applies to any position. Effective for incantatory effects or driving home a point. Use sparingly to maintain impact.
Also Known As
Word repetition Immediate echo Adjacent repetition Direct duplication
Skip to main content