what is zeugma?
defintion
the use of a word to govern two or more words though appropriate to only one;
example
`Mr Pickwick took his hat and his leave'. Dickens
explanation
He took his leave. He took his hat.
In this example, the zeugma is applied to the second word 'leave'. Normally, we would say that "He took his hat." but you can also say "He took his leave." In this case, Dickens has applied the word "took" to both words "hat" and "leave" to create a very concise sentence that summarises the mood of the moment. Dickens makes the author realise with the conciseness of the sentence, that Mr Pickwick was not very satisfied with the situation and left in something of a bad mood. The short sharp sentence makes the reader recognise that his actions were the same and thus reflective of his mood.
In this example, the zeugma is applied to the second word 'leave'. Normally, we would say that "He took his hat." but you can also say "He took his leave." In this case, Dickens has applied the word "took" to both words "hat" and "leave" to create a very concise sentence that summarises the mood of the moment. Dickens makes the author realise with the conciseness of the sentence, that Mr Pickwick was not very satisfied with the situation and left in something of a bad mood. The short sharp sentence makes the reader recognise that his actions were the same and thus reflective of his mood.
further examples