1. A break in grammatical construction within a sentence, where the structure shifts unexpectedly and becomes inconsistent or illogical.
Usage: Plural: anacoluthia or anacoluthons; Formal/technical term used in grammar and rhetoric; From Greek ana- (back) + kolouthos (following)

Examples

• The sentence 'If you want to succeed, hard work is essential' contains an anacolutha because the conditional clause shifts to a noun phrase.
• Writers sometimes use anacolutha intentionally to create a conversational or emphatic tone.
• The speaker's anacolutha—starting with 'When I arrived' but then switching to 'The door was locked'—made the sentence confusing.
• In informal speech, anacolutha is common when people change their minds mid-sentence.
• Editors often correct anacolutha to improve clarity and grammatical consistency.