A figure of speech where you use a title, description, or name of one person instead of their actual name, like calling the President 'the Commander in Chief.'
From Greek anti- (instead of) + onomasia (naming), literally meaning 'naming otherwise.' The term was used in classical rhetoric to describe substituting one name for another. It traveled into English through Latin and French rhetorical texts during the Renaissance.
Antonomasia is why we can call someone 'Your Majesty' instead of their actual name, and why 'the Big Apple' instantly means New York! It's so common in language that we barely notice it, but it shows how human brains recognize people and places through their qualities rather than just their labels.
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