expressive style

Definitions of expressive style
  1. noun
    a way of expressing something (in language or art or music etc.) that is characteristic of a particular person or group of people or period
    synonyms: style
    see moresee less
    types:
    show 83 types...
    hide 83 types...
    allegory
    an expressive style that uses fictional characters and events to describe some subject by suggestive resemblances; an extended metaphor
    analysis
    the use of closed-class words instead of inflections: e.g., `the father of the bride' instead of `the bride's father'
    bathos
    triteness or triviality of style
    black humor, black humour
    the juxtaposition of morbid and farcical elements (in writing or drama) to give a disturbing effect
    device
    something in an artistic work designed to achieve a particular effect
    eloquence, fluency, smoothness
    powerful and effective language
    euphuism
    any artificially elegant style of language
    flatness
    a want of animation or brilliance
    expression, formulation
    the style of expressing yourself
    grandiloquence, grandiosity, magniloquence, ornateness, rhetoric
    high-flown style; excessive use of verbal ornamentation
    headlinese
    using the abbreviated style of headline writers
    jargon
    specialized technical terminology characteristic of a particular subject
    journalese
    the style in which newspapers are written
    legalese
    a style that uses the abstruse technical vocabulary of the law
    delivery, manner of speaking, speech
    your characteristic style or manner of expressing yourself orally
    genre, music genre, musical genre, musical style
    an expressive style of music
    officialese
    the style of writing characteristic of some government officials: formal and obscure
    pathos
    a style that has the power to evoke feelings
    prose
    matter of fact, commonplace, or dull expression
    rhetoric
    using language effectively to please or persuade
    coarseness, saltiness
    language or humor that is down-to-earth
    self-expression
    the expression of one's individuality (usually through creative activities)
    sesquipedality
    using long words
    terseness
    a neatly short and concise expressive style
    turn of expression, turn of phrase
    a distinctive spoken or written expression
    vein
    a distinctive style or manner
    verboseness, verbosity
    an expressive style that uses excessive or empty words
    genre, literary genre, writing style
    a style of expressing yourself in writing
    poetry
    any communication resembling poetry in beauty or the evocation of feeling
    ethos
    a rhetorical appeal that relies on the character or credibility of the speaker
    logos
    a rhetorical appeal to the audience's reason or rationality
    voice
    the distinctive way a writer uses language to express their personality and ideas
    drama
    the literary genre of works intended for the theater
    prose
    ordinary writing as distinguished from verse
    sentimentalism
    the excessive expression of tender feelings, nostalgia, or sadness in any form
    flourish
    a display of ornamental speech or language
    African-American music, black music
    music created by African-American musicians; early forms were songs that had a melodic line and a strong rhythmic beat with repeated choruses
    classical, classical music, serious music
    traditional genre of music conforming to an established form and appealing to critical interest and developed musical taste
    church music, religious music
    genre of music composed for performance as part of religious ceremonies
    march, marching music
    genre of music written for marching
    popular music, popular music genre
    any genre of music having wide appeal (but usually only for a short time)
    address
    the manner of speaking to another individual
    catch
    a break or check in the voice (usually a sign of strong emotion)
    Gongorism
    an affected elegance of style that was introduced into Spanish literature by the poet Gongora
    conceit
    an artistic device or effect
    doctorspeak
    medical jargon
    ecobabble
    using the technical language of ecology to make the user seem ecologically aware
    Eurobabble
    the jargon of European community documents and regulations
    gobbledygook
    incomprehensible or pompous jargon of specialists
    honorific
    an expression of respect
    psychobabble
    using language loaded with psychological terminology
    archaicism, archaism
    the use of an archaic expression
    boilerplate
    standard formulations uniformly found in certain types of legal documents or news stories
    colloquialism
    a colloquial expression; characteristic of spoken or written communication that seeks to imitate informal speech
    idiom, parlance
    a manner of speaking that is natural to native speakers of a language
    Americanism
    an expression that is characteristic of English as spoken by Americans
    Anglicism, Briticism, Britishism
    an expression that is used in Great Britain (especially as contrasted with American English)
    choice of words, diction, phraseology, phrasing, verbiage, wording
    the manner in which something is expressed in words
    tongue
    a manner of speaking
    shibboleth
    a manner of speaking that is distinctive of a particular group of people
    tone, tone of voice
    the quality of a person's voice
    elocution
    an expert manner of speaking involving control of voice and gesture
    inflection, prosody
    the patterns of stress and intonation in a language
    inflection, modulation
    a manner of speaking in which the loudness or pitch or tone of the voice is modified
    blah, bombast, claptrap, fustian, rant
    pompous or pretentious talk or writing
    luridness, sensationalism
    the journalistic use of subject matter that appeals to vulgar tastes
    technobabble
    technical jargon from computing and other high-tech subjects
    conceit
    a witty or ingenious turn of phrase
    conciseness, concision, pithiness, succinctness
    terseness and economy in writing and speaking achieved by expressing a great deal in just a few words
    crispness
    an expressive style that is direct and to the point
    brevity
    the use of brief expressions
    laconicism, laconism
    terseness of expression
    verbalism, verbiage
    overabundance of words
    long-windedness, prolixity, prolixness, windiness, wordiness
    boring verbosity
    ambage, circumlocution, periphrasis
    a style that involves indirect ways of expressing things
    repetitiousness, repetitiveness
    verboseness resulting from excessive repetitions
    pleonasm
    using more words than necessary
    form
    an arrangement of the elements in a composition or discourse
    poesy, poetry, verse
    literature in metrical form
    rhetorical device
    a use of language that creates a literary effect (but often without regard for literal significance)
    imagery
    the use of vivid, descriptive language in literature, especially language that appeals to the senses
    satire
    a literary genre that uses humor to ridicule human failings and vices
    impressionism
    a literary style that seeks to evoke feelings and sensory responses, rather than representing reality objectively
    type of:
    communication
    something that is communicated by or to or between people or groups
DISCLAIMER: These example sentences appear in various news sources and books to reflect the usage of the word ‘expressive style'. Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Vocabulary.com or its editors. Send us feedback
Word Family
EDITOR'S CHOICE

Look up expressive style for the last time

Close your vocabulary gaps with personalized learning that focuses on teaching the words you need to know.

Start your vocabulary training
VocabTrainer - Vocabulary.com's Vocabulary Trainer