Acervatio (ak-er-va’-ti-o): Latin term Quintilian employs for both asyndeton (acervatio dissoluta: a loose heap) and polysyndeton (acervatio iuncta: a conjoined heap).
Asyndeton: the omission of conjunctions between clauses, often resulting in a hurried rhythm or vehement effect.
Walk, run, trot, jog, fly! Time is running out on the avocado sale at the grocery store! Go! Go!
Polysydeton: employing many conjunctions between clauses, often slowing the tempo or rhythm.
I went to the drugstore, and I got my prescription filled, and I saw a friend from high school, and we decided to have a couple of diet cokes, and we talked, and after that I went home and took my medication.
I am boring, and my life is boring, and I’m glad.
Definitions courtesy of “Silva Rhetoricae” (rhetoric.byu.edu).
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