An ELT Glossary : Tricolons

A tricolon is a rhetorical device using three parallel words, phrases or clauses. As the following examples show, tricolons are  used frequently in political speeches :


Government of the people, by the people, for the people.  (Abraham Lincoln)

Never in the history of mankind have so many owed so much to so few. (Winston Churchill)

Friends, comrades, and fellow South Africans, I greet you all in the name of peace, democracy, and freedom for all.  (Nelson Mandela)

I stand here today humbled by the task before us, grateful for the trust you have bestowed, mindful of the sacrifices borne by our ancestors  (Barack Obama)