12 Pleonasms to Avoid

O pleonasm is the repetition of words that have the same idea or meaning. In this way, when issuing a message, it can become redundant.

In some cases, pleonasm occurs simply through force of habit or lack of attention. However, its use can be purposeful, to reinforce what is being said.

In this way, there are two types of pleonasm: the vicious and the literary. Understand the difference between them below:

vicious pleonasm

O vicious pleonasm runs when there is an excessive use of words, in such a way that one of the terms used becomes useless. In this case, it is a language addiction.

A classic example of vicious pleonasm is the expression “to go up”. The verb to go up means “to move to a higher place”, that is, when used alone, the message would already be clear, being unnecessary the use of the term “up”.

“Go down”, “go inside” and “go outside” are other common expressions that work in the same way.

literary pleonasm

In this case, it is a stylistic resource: the figure of speech. O literary pleonasm, therefore, aims to give more clarity to the message transmitted.

At the poemPortuguese Sea, in Fernando Pessoa, we can find an example of literary pleonasm: “O salty sea, how much of your salt / These are tears from Portugal!”.

Sea water is salty, so the use of the adjective would be unnecessary. However, the resource was used to intensify what is being said and, thus, provoke more emotion in the reader.

Examples of pleonasms

Although some pleonasms are well known and even obvious, such as “climbing upwards” or “going inside”, others go unnoticed so that they are accepted and frequently used.

Check below 12 examples of pleonasms for you to avoid:

1. Final touch
2. dawn the day
3. Absolutely sure
4. attend in person
5. live together
6. connecting link
7. Face it head on
8. Real facts
9. years ago
10. another alternative
11. Small details
12. General rule

In all these cases, pleonasm is a vice of language. Thus, only one word or expression would be enough to express the idea, without any prejudice to its understanding.

Difference between pleonasm and redundancy

The difference between pleonasm and redundancy depends on the purpose of repeating the words used in the sentence.

Redundancy is the unnecessary repetition of words and is therefore an error. In this way, considering the concept of vicious pleonasm, redundancy and pleonasm are the same thing.

However, if the comparison is made with literary pleonasm, there is a difference. While in redundancy the repetition of words has no function, in pleonasm it is emphatic and purposeful in order to attract the reader's attention.

Read too:

• Figures of speech - Summary
• Twenty years ago or twenty years ago
• Language and language: What's the difference?
• History of Literature – Modernity and Modernism of the Portuguese Poet Fernando Pessoa