What does anacoluthon mean?
Anacoluthon is a noun referring to a break in grammatical or logical sequence within a sentence, occurring when a speaker or writer begins one construction and then abandons it partway through in favour of another, so that the sentence never completes its original form. A classic example is a sentence that opens with a conditional clause ('If you allow me to finish...') but then shifts into unrelated material without resolving that opening. The term originates in classical Greek rhetoric, where it was studied both as an error of careless composition and as a deliberate figure capable of conveying urgency, spontaneity, or emotional disruption. Today anacoluthon appears chiefly in linguistics, literary criticism, and rhetoric, describing everything from casual slips in spoken language to intentional stylistic devices in modernist prose. Its rarity outside specialist contexts makes it a distinctive term for anyone interested in how sentences are constructed — and how they can artfully come apart.
nounA syntactic break or inconsistency within a sentence, in which the latter part does not grammatically follow the earlier part — for example, when a speaker begins one construction and abandons it mid-sentence for another.
- A grammatical inconsistency in which the second part of a sentence does not follow on logically or syntactically from the first.
- In classical rhetoric, a figure of speech involving such a deliberate or accidental break in syntactic construction.
"The politician's speech was full of anacoluthon, veering from a promise about taxes into an unrelated anecdote without ever completing the first thought."
"Her essay contained a striking anacoluthon: she began describing the storm and then, mid-sentence, switched to discussing her grandmother's cooking."
"Classical rhetoricians catalogued anacoluthon among the figures that could be used deliberately to startle or amuse an audience."
The plural follows the Greek pattern; 'anacoluthons' is also seen but less standard in scholarly writing.
"The critic identified several anacolutha in the poet's later work."
The word 'anacoluthon' describes sentences that lose their own thread — a term so precise that rhetoricians have used it for over two thousand years to name the moment a sentence forgets where it was going.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of anacoluthon
Anacoluthon derives from the ancient Greek ἀνακόλουθον (anakolouthon), meaning 'not following' or 'inconsistent', formed from the prefix ana- ('back' or 'again') combined with akolouthos ('following'). The term entered Latin and later European scholarly vocabulary through the rhetorical tradition of antiquity, becoming established in English usage by the early modern period as grammarians and rhetoricians codified classical figures of speech. It shares its Greek root with related terms such as anacoluthic (the adjectival form) and connects more broadly to the family of Greek-derived words built on akolouthos.
Related word forms
How anacoluthon is actually used
Anacoluthon is a technical term from rhetoric and grammar, encountered mainly in academic writing, linguistics, and discussions of rhetoric. It is rare in everyday conversation. In speech it often occurs naturally as speakers change course mid-sentence; in literature it may be used deliberately for stylistic effect. The plural is typically 'anacolutha', following Greek patterns, though 'anacoluthons' also appears.
Easily confused with anacoluthon
An anachronism is something placed in the wrong historical time period, whereas an anacoluthon is a grammatical discontinuity within a sentence.
A non sequitur is a conclusion that does not logically follow from what precedes it, while an anacoluthon is specifically a failure of grammatical sequence within a sentence's structure.