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merismus
Etymology: Greek > Latin: dividing, partition.

This is the Latin form that comes from ancient Greek merismos and the verb form, merisein, "to divide" from meros, "part" and is defined as a type of synecdoche [a figure of speech] in which a totality is expressed by two contrasting parts; such as, "high and low, rich and poor, good and bad, old and young, thick and thin, near and far".

A synecdoche [si NEK duh kee] (Greek > Latin) is defined as, "a figure of speech used in rhetoric in which a part is used for a whole or vice versa"; literally, "a receiving together or jointly". Examples include, "bread for food, the army for a soldier, copper for a penny, forty hired hands instead of forty paid workmen", and "the white cliffs of Dover for England". In addition, the whole may stand for the part; as with, "The fleet hit town" for "The sailors of the fleet hit town".

Another form is merismatic, meaning capable of active division (of cells).

This entry is located in the following unit: Latin Proverbs, Mottoes, Phrases, and Words: Group M (page 3)