Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun A word-for-word translation.
  • transitive verb To translate, especially literally.
  • transitive verb To manipulate the wording of (a text), especially as a means of subtly altering the sense.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • noun A translation; specifically, a verbal translation; a close version or translation from one language into another: opposed to paraphrase.
  • noun A responding phrase; a repartee.
  • To translate literally; turn into exactly corresponding words: as, to metaphrase Latin poetry.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • noun A verbal translation; a version or translation from one language into another, word for word; a literal translation; -- opposed to paraphrase.
  • noun An answering phrase; repartee.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun a literal, word-for-word translation.
  • noun An answering phrase; repartee.
  • verb to make such a literal translation.

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[New Latin metaphrasis, from Greek, translation, paraphrase, from metaphrazein, to translate : meta-, meta- + phrazein, to tell, show; see gwhren- in Indo-European roots.]

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From Ancient Greek μεταφράζομαι (metaphrazomai, "consider after")

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Examples

  • But most men, little recking what a small portion of the original they were reading, satisfied themselves with the Anglo French epitome and metaphrase.

    The Book of The Thousand Nights And A Night 2006

  • Sustaining these views by a few footnotes, I add (1) a literal rendering of my own, and then (2) a metaphrase of the same, bringing out the argument from the crabbed obstructions of the Latin text.

    ANF01. The Apostolic Fathers with Justin Martyr and Irenaeus 1819-1893 2001

  • Ben Jonson, whose translation of Horace's _Art of Poetry_ is cited by Dryden as an example of "metaphrase, or turning an author word by word and line by line from one language to another," [395] is perhaps largely responsible for the mistaken impression regarding the earlier translators.

    Early Theories of Translation Flora Ross Amos

  • Already in the third century, St. Gregory Thaumaturgus, in his metaphrase, then Gregory of Nyssa, in eight homilies, later Hugh of St. Victor, in nineteen homilies, set forth the wisdom of Qoheleth as truly celestial and Divine.

    The Catholic Encyclopedia, Volume 5: Diocese-Fathers of Mercy 1840-1916 1913

  • The way I have taken is not so strait as metaphrase, nor so loose as paraphrase: some things too I have omitted, and sometimes have added of my own.

    Dedication Vergil 1909

  • His general theory may be stated as an aim at something between the literalness of metaphrase and the looseness of paraphase.

    Among My Books First Series James Russell Lowell 1855

  • I have preferred the natural order, free, and familiar style, to the artificial order, grave, solemn, and antiquated style; and in so doing, I have had occasion to have reference to the vocal metaphrase of some words.

    The Hedge School; The Midnight Mass; The Donagh Traits And Stories Of The Irish Peasantry, The Works of William Carleton, Volume Three William Carleton 1831

  • England, at least to defend its liberties; to improve burlesque into satire; to free translation from the fetters of verbal metaphrase, and exclude it from the licence of paraphrase; to teach posterity the powerful and varied poetical harmony of which their language was capable; to give an example of the lyric ode of unapproached excellence; and to leave to English literature a name, second only to those of

    The Dramatic Works of John Dryden, Volume 1 With a Life of the Author Walter Scott 1801

  • "Translation, therefore," says Dryden, "is not so loose as paraphrase, nor so close as metaphrase."

    Lives of the Poets, Volume 1 Samuel Johnson 1746

  • (Sometimes you’ll hear this kind of not-quite-translation of verse called “metaphrase,” though “metaphrase” can also, in discussions of prose, refer to a very literal translation, as opposed to paraphrase.)

    and the pleiades : Stephen Burt : Harriet the Blog : The Poetry Foundation 2007

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