Where Does the Word Chiasmus Come from?

The word chiasmus derives from the Greek word for “crossing” or “X-shaped.” One famous example of chiasmus comes from Samuel Johnson's 1794 poem “The Vanity of Human Wishes.” It reads: “By day the frolic, and the dance by night.”

Where did chiasmus come from?

The term chiastic derives from the mid-17th century term chiasmus, which refers to a crosswise arrangement of concepts or words that are repeated in reverse order. Chiasmus derives from the Greek word khiasmos, a word that is khiazein, marked with the letter khi. From khi comes chi.

What does chiasmus mean in Greek?

In rhetoric, chiasmus (/kaɪˈæzməs/ ky-AZ-məs) or, less commonly, chiasm (Latin term from Greek χίασμα, "crossing", from the Greek χιάζω, chiázō, "to shape like the letter Χ"), is a "reversal of grammatical structures in successive phrases or clauses – but no repetition of words".