ELEGANCE, in oratory and composition, an ornament of politeness and agreeableness shown in any discourse, with such a choice of rich and happy expressions, as to rise politely above the common manners, so as to strike people of a delicate taste.
It is observed, that elegance, though irregular, is preferable to regularity without elegance: that is, by being so scrupulous of grammatical construction, we lose certain licences wherein the elegance of language consists.