oxymoron Meaning, Definition & Usage

  1. noun conjoining contradictory terms (as in `deafening silence')

WordNet


Ox`y*mo"ron noun
Etymology
NL., fr. Gr. , fr. pointedly foolish; sharp + foolish.
Definitions
  1. (Rhet.) A figure in which an epithet of a contrary signification is added to a word; e. g., cruel kindness; laborious idleness.

Webster 1913