Definition:
A phrase coined by Henry W. Fowler in The King's English (1906) and used again in Modern English Usage (1926; second edition, 1965, Oxford University Press) to refer to the excessive use of synonyms to mean a single thing.
Examples & Observations:
"It is the second-rate writers, those intent rather on expressing themselves prettily than on conveying their meaning clearly . . ., that are chiefly open to the allurements of elegant variation. . . .
"The fatal influence is the advice given to young writers never to use the same word twice in a sentence--or within 20 lines or other limit. The advice has its uses; it reminds any who may be in danger of forgetting it that there are such things as pronouns, the substitution of which relieves monotony. . . . The advice also gives a useful warning that a noticeable word used once should not be used again in the neighbourhood with a different application. . . .
"These, however, are mere pieces of gross carelessness . . .. Diametrically opposed to them are sentences in which the writer, far from carelessly repeating a word in a different application, has carefully not repeated it in a similar application. The effect is to set readers wondering what the significance of the change is, only to conclude disappointingly that it has none. The Bohemian Diet will be the second Parliament to elect women deputies, for Sweden already has several lady deputies. / There are a not inconsiderable number of employers who appear to hold the same opinion, but certain owners--notably those of South Wales--hold a contrary view to this. . . What has Bohemia done that its females should be mere women? Are owners subject to influences that do not affect employers?"
(Henry W. Fowler and Ernest Gowers, A Dictionary of Modern English Usage, second edition, Oxford at the Clarendon Press, 1965)
