synecdoche Meaning, Definition & Usage

  1. noun substituting a more inclusive term for a less inclusive one or vice versa

WordNet

Syn*ec"do*che noun
Etymology
L. synecdoche, Gr. , fr. to receive jointly; with + to receive; out + to receive.
Definitions
  1. (Rhet.) A figure or trope by which a part of a thing is put for the whole (as, fifty sail for fifty ships), or the whole for a part (as, the smiling year for spring), the species for the genus (as, cutthroat for assassin), the genus for the species (as, a creature for a man), the name of the material for the thing made, etc. Bain.

Webster 1913