Main Page | See live article | Alphabetical index Syllepsis is a figure of speech in which one word simultaneously modifies two or more other words such that the modification must be understood differently with respect to each modified word. This creates a semantic incongruity which is often humorous. Examples: He leaned heavily on the podium and stale jokes. He lost his hat and his temper. She went home in a flood of tears and a sedan chair -- Charles Dickens You held your breath and the door for me. -- Alanis Morrissette, in "Head Over Feet": This article is from Wikipedia. All text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License.