Figure of Speech
Oxymoron
From Greek oxymoros: sharply foolish. Common in Petrarchan love poetry (paradoxes of love); Shakespeare uses it extensively in Romeo and Juliet.
Definition
A figure that combines two contradictory or mutually exclusive terms in a single compressed expression.
Example
'Deafening silence,' 'living death,' 'sweet sorrow,' 'dark light,' 'bitter sweet.'