I'm looking for a particular English literary term, and I can't seem to find it anywhere. I wondered if any of you know it?

It's where two words are used in the same sentence that look similar, but are actually different. An example is, "They were complaining but compliant". I've been searching for different terms, but can't find this one! Is there a particular term for such a thing? I thought there was.

It doesn't ring any bells, and I've done a stupid amount of reading on this kind of stuff!

It's almost a transposal (when the words of one word are rearranged to form another, eg things --- nights) but other than that I'm stumped.

Do let us know if you find out what the term is (if there is one).

The only thing I can think of that even comes close would be false cognates but that term only applies to words in different languages that look the same.

"Complaining but compliant" could be paronomasia which is the use of similar sounding words; often etymological wordplay. I could have quite a bit of pun with your example. As a bonus it's a bit of an oxymoron.
http://www.uky.edu/AS/Classics/rhetoric.html

Assonance would apply as long as the vowels coincided, as it refers to two or more words with similar vowels but different consonants, and also used in poetry.
Homonyms are words that sound the same but are spelt differently so maybe even closer.

I thought of paronomasia soonappear, but didn't think it was quite the thing. My understanding of paronomasia was that it was a (deliberate) device of "comic" wordplay. It's interesting, your ref from a "rhetorical" source gives it quite a different slant to this linguistic angle...hmmm...

I like the description of the specific example being "a bit of an oxymoron" - perhaps a "semi-moron", or even better, a "quasi-moron"!

Quite ing.

Thanks for the help, everyone. It could possibly be paronomasia.