Syntax & Word Order
Hyperbaton
Departing from usual word order, such as placing an object before its verb. The rearrangement can emphasize a word or delay part of the meaning.
"Some rise by sin, and some by virtue fall." — Measure for Measure
Don't confuse it with Anastrophe. Anastrophe is the mild, single-pair inversion; hyperbaton covers more violent or extended derangements.
Examples
This promise I will never break.
The object “This promise” moves before the subject and verb for emphasis.
Often used alongside this device
Explore devices that often appear in the same passages as hyperbaton.
Asyndeton 7 Passive Voice 6 Litotes 6 Anaphora 6 Parallelism 5 Synecdoche 4 Polysyndeton 4 Isocolon 4
The rest of the family
Anastrophe Periodic Sentence Cumulative (Loose) Sentence Parataxis Parenthesis Apposition / Appositive Zeugma Hendiadys Pleonasm Enumeration / Accumulatio Passive Voice Cleft Sentence