Word.ws English Dictionary

elegant variation

elegant variation noun: the use of synonyms to avoid repetition (regarded as a stylistic fault when done excessively).

Noun

elegant variation (countable and uncountable, plural elegant variations)

  1. The use of synonyms to avoid repetition (regarded as a stylistic fault when done excessively).
    • A closely related rule for encoding legal texts is the same meaning, same form principle. We saw previously that this rule requires lawyers to avoid elegant variation. Instead, they should consistently use one word if they mean the same thing.1999, Peter M. Tiersma, Legal Language, University of Chicago Press, →ISBN, page 131
    Synonyms:
    inelegant variation

Synonyms of elegant variation

  • inelegant variation

Forms of elegant variation

pluralelegant variations

Origin of elegant variation

Introduced by H. W. Fowler and F. G. Fowler in The King's English (1906).

Questions about elegant variation

What does elegant variation mean?
Elegant variation means the use of synonyms to avoid repetition (regarded as a stylistic fault when done excessively).
What part of speech is elegant variation?
Elegant variation is a noun.
What is the plural of elegant variation?
The plural of elegant variation is elegant variations.

Words near elegant variation in the dictionary

  1. elegant parrot
  2. elegant parrots
  3. elegant quail
  4. elegant tit
  5. elegant tits
  6. elegant variation
  7. elegant variations
  8. elegante
  9. elegantes
  10. elegantin
  11. elegantly

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: elegant variation (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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