paraprosdokian

From Ancient Greek παρά (pará, “against”) + προσδοκία (prosdokía, “expectation”).

• IPA^(key): /ˌpæɹəˌpɹoʊsˈdoʊkiən/

• Audio (Southern England):

  (file)

paraprosdokian (plural paraprosdokians)

1. Figure of speech in which the latter part of a sentence or phrase is surprising or unexpected, often humorously.
   • 1906, J. C. Stobart, The Johnson Epoch (Epochs of English literature), volume VII, London: E. Arnold, page 144:

     This style of comic poetry, a kind of parody of the Ballad, a series of quatrains generally leading up to a paraprosdokian or surprise in the fourth line, was initiated by [Oliver] Goldsmith in this merry tale.

• bathos
• non sequitur

• paraprosdokian on Wikipedia.Wikipedia