| Figure Name | adianoeta |
| Source | Quintilian 8.2.20; Silva Rhetoricae (http://humanities.byu.edu/rhetoric/Silva.htm) |
| Earliest Source | None |
| Synonyms | |
| Etymology | None |
| Type | Trope |
| Linguistic Domain |
Semantic |
| Definition |
1. An expression that, in addition to an obvious meaning, carries a second, subtle meaning (often at variance with the ostensible meaning). (Silva Rhetoricae) |
| Example |
1. In the following example, what is meant is that a man tore his own limbs with his teeth. This is hinted at obscurely (if at all) in the phrase meant to communicate this: The man laid upon himself (Silva Rhetoricae) |
| Kind Of | Similarity Opposition |
| Part Of | irony |
| Related Figures | irony, allegory |
| Notes | Adianoeta is a kind of irony, since it uses terms that imply a different meaning than they denote; however, adianoeta counts on carrying both its meanings, playing off how different audiences will understand the same locution (one, literally; the other, ironically). Like adianoeta, allegory employs both the surface meaning or literal use of words as well as the symbolic meanings of words. |
| Confidence | Unconfident |
| Last Editor | Ashley Rose Kelly |
| Confidence | Unconfident |
| Editorial Notes | fixed title, fixed source |
| Reviewed | Yes |
| Reviewer | Ashley Rose Kelly |