Synecdoche

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Synecdoche is a figure of speech in which:

a term denoting a part of something is used to refer to the whole thing, or
a term denoting a thing (a "whole") is used to refer to part of it, or
a term denoting a specific class of thing (a "species") is used to refer to a larger, more general class (a "genus"), or
a term denoting a general class of thing (genus) is used to refer to a smaller, more specific class (species), or
a term denoting a material is used to refer to an object composed of that material.

Synecdoche is closely related to metonymy (the figure of speech in which a term denoting one thing is used to refer to a related thing); indeed, synecdoche is often considered a subclass of metonymy. It is more distantly related to other figures of speech, such as metaphor.

The use of synecdoche is a common way to emphasize an important aspect of a fictional character; for example, a character might be consistently described by a single body part, such as the eyes, which comes to represent the character.^{[citation needed]}

Also, sonnets and other forms of love poetry frequently use synecdoches to characterize the beloved in terms of individual body parts rather than a whole, coherent self. This practice is especially common in the Petrarchan sonnet, where the idealised beloved is often described part by part, from head to toe.

[edit] Examples

Examples where a part of something is used to refer to the whole:
- "The hired hands [workers] are not doing their jobs."
- "His parents bought him a new set of wheels [car]."
- Similarly, "mouths to feed" for hungry people, "white hair" for an elderly person, "The Press" for newsmedia.
- The vulgar and offensive use of a coarse anatomical term to disparage an entire person.

Examples where the whole of something is used to refer to a part of it:
- "The police [on-duty police officers] came too late."
- "Use your head [brain] to figure it out."
- "Michigan [the government of Michigan] just passed a law addressing this problem."
- Similarly, "body" for the trunk of the body, the "smiling year" for spring

Examples where a species (specific kind) is used to refer to its genus (more general kind):
- "The cutthroats [assassins] there will as soon shoot a man as look at him."
- "Could you pass me a Kleenex [facial tissue]?"
- Similarly, "coke" for soda, "castle" for home, "bread" for food, "Judas" for traitor

Examples where a genus is used to refer to a species:
- "No creature [person] would believe that story."
- "We're fresh out of milk [cow's milk], but we do have goat's milk."

Examples where the material an object is made of is used to refer to the object itself:
- "Those are some nice threads [clothes]."
- "Would you like paper or plastic [paper or plastic bags]?"
- Similarly, "willow" for cricket bat, "copper" for penny, "boards" for stage, "ivories" for piano keys, "plastic" for credit card, "the hardwood" for a gym floor