Pronunciation: per-if'-ra-sis
Alternate Spelling: Also sp. perifrasis
Latin Synonyms: the figure of ambage
The substitution of a descriptive word or phrase for a proper name (a species of circumlocution); or, conversely, the use of a proper name as a shorthand to stand for qualities associated with it.
In the TV show "Dinosaurs" the infant dino called his father, "Not-the-Mama." He's no Fabio to look at; but then, he's no Woody Allen, either. Said of Aristotle: "The prince of Peripatetics"