||An*tis"tro*phe (?), n. [L., fr. Gr. ?,
fr. ? to turn to the opposite side; ? against + ? to turn. See
Strophe.] 1. In Greek choruses and dances, the
returning of the chorus, exactly answering to a previous strophe or
movement from right to left. Hence: The lines of this part of the choral
song.
It was customary, on some occasions, to dance round the
altars whilst they sang the sacred hymns, which consisted of three stanzas
or parts; the first of which, called strophe, was sung in turning from east
to west; the other, named antistrophe, in returning from west to
east; then they stood before the altar, and sang the epode, which was the
last part of the song.
Abp. Potter.
2. (Rhet.) (a) The
repetition of words in an inverse order; as, the master of the servant and
the servant of the master. (b) The retort or
turning of an adversary's plea against him.