A synecdoche (, ; from Greek συνεκδοχή synekdoche , meaning “simultaneous understanding”) is a figure of speech in which a term for a part of something refers to the whole of something, or vice versa. A synecdoche is a class of metonymy, often by means of either mentioning a part for the whole, or conversely the whole for one of its parts. Examples from everyday English-language idiomatic expressions include “bread and butter” for “livelihood”, “suits” for “businessmen”, “boots” for “soldiers”, etc.