adjective
- serving to explain or clarify; providing additional explanation or interpretation of a preceding word or phrase
Usage: formal; grammar and rhetoric
Examples
- The phrase 'my brother, John' uses an epexegetic appositive to clarify which brother is meant.
- In the sentence 'The king, a wise ruler,' the appositive phrase is epexegetic.
- Epexegetic clauses help readers understand the intended meaning of ambiguous terms.
- The author added an epexegetic note to explain the historical context.
- Epexegetic devices are common in formal writing and classical rhetoric.