Apedia

Tmesis Tuh Mee Sis Tmee Sis Noun Stuffing Word Middle Greek

Tmesis is a literary or rhetorical device that involves inserting a word into the middle of another word.

Tmesis is the act of inserting a word into the middle of another word.

Front tmesis \tuh-MEE-sis, TMEE-sis\
Back noun
Stuffing a word into the middle of another word.

[From Greek tmesis (a cutting), from temnein (to cut). Ultimately from the Indo-European root tem- (to cut), which is also the source of tonsure, temple, contemplate, epitome, tome, anatomy, and atomy. First recorded use: 1586.]

"I don't like tmesis; it's abso-bloody-lutely ri-flipping-diculous."

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