serréserrés

Serréserrés is a neologism used in some French-language discussions of poetics and stylistics to describe a phenomenon in which semantic and formal elements are densely packed through a deliberate stacking of related terms. The word derives from serrer, meaning to tighten or press, and from serré, tight, underscoring the sense of compression that characterizes the device.

Definition and scope: In linguistic analysis, seréserrés refers to a technique where a base lexical item is followed by closely related variants—near-synonyms, reduplication, or morphologically related forms—in rapid succession. The effect is an intensified yet compact unit of meaning, producing a dense linguistic texture. The device can operate at the level of phonology, lexicon, or syntax, and is sometimes linked to concepts such as redundancy or pleonasm when overused.

Applications: In poetry, prose, and even advertising copy, serréserrés can create a sense of insistence or cohesion by chaining related terms. In typography and graphic design, the term has been used to describe layouts that repeat or echo elements to create visual density and a tight, unified impression.

Reception and limitations: The term has limited usage and is not part of formal linguistic taxonomy; it remains descriptive and contested. Some scholars treat it as a useful heuristic for describing contemporary stylistic experiments; others caution that it risks vagueness without clear criteria or criteria that would distinguish it from existing concepts such as pleonasm or reduplication.

See also: pleonasm, reduplication, tautonymy, compression.