Words cancelling out each other?

dlofnep

What do you call it when two words cancel out each other, but not in a contradictory sense like an oxymoron?

Dizzyblabla

a double negative?

dlofnep

No.. Not a double negative. It's a superfluous statement or word. Thanks anyways.

OfflerCrocGod

It's like "a skinny anorexic".....you're right that there is a word to describe the use of descriptive words which are superfluous but ARGGGHHH I can't remember, I think it begins with 'p' - or then again maybe not.

/bangs head against wall. :rolleyes:

simu

tautology?
redundancy?

Capt'n Midnight

what about prefixes as per - uninflamable

dlofnep

OfflerCrocGod wrote:

It's like "a skinny anorexic".....you're right that there is a word to describe the use of descriptive words which are superfluous but ARGGGHHH I can't remember, I think it begins with 'p' - or then again maybe not.

/bangs head against wall. :rolleyes:

Yeah, a skinny anorexic is a good example.. It's none of the words mentioned.. I don't know why it's annoying me so much but I just can't think of what it is.

simu

dlofnep wrote:

Yeah, a skinny anorexic is a good example.. It's none of the words mentioned.. I don't know why it's annoying me so much but I just can't think of what it is.

It might be possible to have a skinny anorexic - they might have been force fed to fatness but still have an anorexic's thought patterns in their mind, for example.

But yeah, still looking for that word.

simu

Oh wait! Would it be pleonasm?

http://dictionary.reference.com/search?q=pleonasm

/awaits rapturous applause

dlofnep

Ding! Ding! Ding! Ding!

Simu wins.

Sapien

dlofnep wrote:

What do you call it when two words cancel out each other, but not in a contradictory sense like an oxymoron?

Could you have meant litotes?

biko

Maybe perhaps "corollary" could fit too ;-)