[ad. late L. tropologia (Jerome, a. 400), a. late Gr. τροπολογία (Justin Martyr, a. 160), f. τρόπος trope: see -LOGY. Cf. F. tropologie (a. 1300 in Godef., Compl.).]
1. ‘A speaking by tropes’ (Blount, 1656); the use of metaphor in speech or writing; figurative discourse.
1519. Horman, Vulg., 98 b. The figuris of construction and locucion: and specially allygoris: and tropologies: & anagogies.
1613. Purchas, Pilgrimage (1614), 88. Those, that by Allegories and Tropologies peruert and obscure the Historie of their Gods.
1678. [see TROPOLOGIZE].
1873. F. Hall, Mod. Eng., vi. 170. But, whether due to tropology, or to whatever other cause, multivocals, as conducing to brevity and expressiveness, are unwisely condemned, or deprecated, except where they entail ambiguity.
2. A moral discourse; a secondary sense or interpretation of Scripture relating to morals (cf. TROPOLOGICAL 2).
1583. Fulke, Defence, 47. I can not, following both the storie, and the tropologie or doctrine of maners, comprehend both briefly.
1706. Phillips (ed. Kersey), Tropology,… a Moral Discourse tending to the Reformation of Manners.
1896. Lina Eckenstein, Woman under Monasticism, 113. The four-square pattern of ecclesiastical usage, namely according to the letter, allegory, tropology and anagogy.
3. A treatise on tropes or figures of speech.
a. 1667. Jer. Taylor, Serm., Wks. 1831, IV. 160. Vocabularies, tropologies, and expositions of words and phrases.
1768. J. Brown (title), Sacred Tropology.
