Distinctio
An explicit definition, mid-argument, of a term the speaker will then rely on — narrowing the sense to prevent ambiguity.
Distinctio, from the Latin for 'distinction', is the rhetorical move in which a speaker pauses to define, narrow, or disambiguate a key term before continuing. 'When I say freedom, I do not mean licence — I mean the ordered liberty of citizens under law'; the argument then proceeds on that specified meaning.
The figure is essential wherever a word carries several senses. Philosophy, law, and theology are full of distinctios because the disputes so often turn on which sense of a shared word is in play. A careful distinctio removes an argumentative weapon from the opponent's hand: they cannot exploit an ambiguity the speaker has already closed.
Distinctio also functions as a courtesy to the audience. By stating openly what a term will mean for the rest of the speech, the speaker relieves the reader of guessing and models the kind of precision they expect in reply. In editorial writing, a well-placed distinctio in the opening paragraphs can head off half the letters to the editor.
Common mistake: using distinctio to smuggle in a private definition without argument. 'By justice I mean the outcome I prefer' is a distinctio only in form; substantively, it begs the question. The figure earns its authority only when the specified meaning is one the audience could accept even before hearing the argument that follows.
“When I use a word, Humpty Dumpty said, in rather a scornful tone, it means just what I choose it to mean — neither more nor less.”
Keep reading the glossary
A rhetorical expression of genuine or feigned doubt about how to proceed — the speaker stops to wonder aloud.
Anticipating an objection in your own argument and answering it before it can be raised.
A rhetorical figure in which the speaker asks a question and immediately answers it.
A grammatical balance of two opposed ideas — 'to be or not to be'.