Anapodoton

//ˌænəˈpɒdətən// noun

noun ·Rare ·Advanced level

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    A special kind of ellipsis in which a main clause implied by a subordinate clause is left out. countable, rhetoric, uncountable

Etymology

Learned borrowing from Ancient Greek ἀναπόδοτον (anapódoton), alternative form of ἀνανταπόδοτον (anantapódoton) (whence anantapodoton), from ἀν- (an-, “not”) + ἀνταποδίδωμι (antapodídōmi, “to give back, correspond with”).

Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.