repetition
Other forms: repetitions
Use the noun repetition to describe something that is repeated over and over, like the repetition of singing the alphabet song several times a day to help young children learn the letters.
To correctly pronounce repetition, accent the third syllable: "re-peh-TIH-shun." Repetition and the closely related repeat come from the Latin word repetere, meaning "do or say again." It can be a very effective tool in public speaking, such as the repetition of "I have a dream that one day . . ." in Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s famous speech.
Definitions of repetition
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the act of doing or performing again
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synonyms:
repeating
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types:
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echolalia
(psychiatry) mechanical and meaningless repetition of the words of another person (as in schizophrenia)
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iteration
doing or saying again; a repeated performance
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redundancy
repetition of an act needlessly
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reduplication, reiteration
the act of repeating over and again (or an instance thereof)
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copying
an act of copying
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action replay, instant replay, replay
the immediate rebroadcast of some action (especially sports action) that has been recorded on videotape
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renewal
the act of renewing
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replication
the repetition of an experiment in order to test the validity of its conclusion
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reprise
the repetition or resumption of some action
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duplication, gemination
the act of copying or making a duplicate (or duplicates) of something
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replication, reproduction
the act of making copies
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imitation
copying (or trying to copy) the actions of someone else
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self-renewal
the act of renewing yourself (or itself)
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type of:
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continuance, continuation
the act of continuing an activity without interruption
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an event that repeats
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synonyms:
repeat
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types:
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sequence
several repetitions of a melodic phrase in different keys
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cycle
a periodically repeated sequence of events
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rematch, replay
something (especially a game) that is played again
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recurrence, return
the event of happening again (especially at regular intervals)
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merry-go-round
a never-ending cycle of activities and events (especially when they seem to have little purpose)
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samsara
(Hinduism and Buddhism) the endless cycle of birth and suffering and death and rebirth
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atavism, reversion, throwback
a reappearance of an earlier characteristic
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flashback
an unexpected but vivid recurrence of a past experience (especially a recurrence of the effects of an hallucinogenic drug taken much earlier)
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type of:
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periodic event, recurrent event
an event that recurs at intervals
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the repeated use of the same word or word pattern as a rhetorical device
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types:
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anadiplosis, reduplication
repetition of the final words of a sentence or line at the beginning of the next
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epanalepsis
repetition after intervening words
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epanodos
repetition of a group of words in reverse order
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epiphora, epistrophe
repetition of the ends of two or more successive sentences, verses, etc.
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gemination
the doubling of a word or phrase (as for rhetorical effect)
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ploce
(rhetoric) repetition to gain special emphasis or extend meaning
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polyptoton
repetition of a word in a different case or inflection in the same sentence
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anaphora, epanaphora
repetition of a word or phrase at the beginning of successive clauses
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anaphora
using a pronoun or similar word instead of repeating a word used earlier
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symploce
repetition of a word or phrase at the beginning and another at the end of successive clauses, i.e., simultaneous use of anaphora and epistrophe
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type of:
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rhetorical device
a use of language that creates a literary effect (but often without regard for literal significance)
Pronunciation
US
/ˈrɛpəˌtɪʃən/
UK
/rɛpəˈtɪʃən/
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DISCLAIMER: These example sentences appear in various news sources and books to reflect the usage of the word ‘repetition'.
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