"The list that follows is made up of words and phrases used by scholars, critics, writers--in fact, all literate people--to exchange ideas and information about language. Most of the words and phrases have appeared in recent years in the multiple-choice or essay sections of AP Language and Composition exams.
Terms : Hide Images
| 3642531994 | abstract | (n.) An abbreviated synopsis of a longer work of scholarship or research. (adj.) Dealing with or tending to deal with a subject apart from a particular or specific instance. | 0 | |
| 3642531995 | ad hominem | Latin for "against the man." A fallacy that appeals to emotion and feeling instead of rational intellect as it resorts to attacking one's opponent instead of their argument. | 1 | |
| 3642531996 | adage | A saying or proverb containing a truth based on experience and often couched in metaphorical language. Example: A rolling stone gathers no moss. | 2 | |
| 3642531997 | allegory | A story in which a second meaning is to be read beneath the surface. | 3 | |
| 3642531998 | alliteration | The repetition of one or more initial consonants in a group of words or lines in a poem. | 4 | |
| 3642531999 | allusion | A reference to a person, place, or event meant to create an effect or enhance the meaning of an idea. | 5 | |
| 3642532000 | ambiguity | A vagueness of meaning; a conscious lack of clarity meant to evoke multiple meanings or interpretations. | 6 | |
| 3642532001 | anachronism | A person, scene, event or other element that fails to correspond with the appropriate time or era. | 7 | |
| 3642532002 | analogy | A comparison that points out similarities between two dissimilar things; a passage that points out several similarities between two unlike things is called an extended analogy. | 8 | |
| 3642532003 | anecdote | A brief explanation, summary, or evaluation of a text or work of literature. | 9 | |
| 3642532004 | annotation | A brief explanation, summary, or evaluation of a text or work of literature. | 10 | |
| 3642532005 | antagonist | A character or force in a work of literature that, by opposing the protagonist, produces tension or conflict. | 11 | |
| 3642532006 | antecedent | A word to which a pronoun refers. | 12 | |
| 3642532007 | antithesis | A rhetorical opposition or contrast of ideas by means of a grammatical arrangement of words, clauses, or sentences. | 13 | |
| 3642532008 | aphorism | A short, pithy statement of a generally accepted truth or sentiment. | 14 | |
| 3642532010 | apostrophe | A locution that addresses a person or personified thing not present. | 15 | |
| 3642532012 | archetype | An abstract or ideal conception of a type; a perfectly typical example; an original model or form. | 16 | |
| 3642532013 | assonance | The repetition of two or more vowel sounds in a group of words in prose or poetry. | 17 | |
| 3642532015 | bathos | Insincere or overdone sentimentality. | 18 | |
| 3642532017 | bibliography | A list of works cited or otherwise relevant to a particular subject. | 19 | |
| 3642532018 | bombast | Inflated, pretentious language. | 20 | |
| 3642532019 | burlesque | A work of literature meant to ridicule a subject; a grotesque imitation. | 21 | |
| 3642532020 | cacophony | Grating, inharmonious sounds. | 22 | |
| 3642532021 | canon | The works considered the most important in a national literature or period; works widely read and studied. | 23 | |
| 3642532022 | caricature | A grotesque or exaggerated likeness of striking qualities in persons and things. | 24 | |
| 3642532024 | circumlocution | Literally, "talking around" a subject; i.e., discourse that avoids direct reference to a subject. | 25 | |
| 3642532027 | clause | A structural element of a sentence, consisting of a grammatical subject and a predicate. | 26 | |
| 3642532028 | independent clauses | sometimes called main clauses, they stand on their own as complete sentences | 27 | |
| 3642532029 | dependent clauses | are used as nouns or modifiers, are incomplete sentences and cannot stand alone grammatically; they are sometimes called subordinate clauses; those that function as adjectives, nouns, or adverbs are known, respectively, as adjective, noun, and adverbial clauses | 28 | |
| 3642532030 | climax | The high point, or turning point, of a story or play. | 29 | |
| 3642532031 | comparison and contrast | A mode of discourse in which two or more things are compared and contrasted. Comparison often refers to similarities, contrast to differences. | 30 | |
| 3642532032 | conceit | A witty or ingenious thought; a diverting or highly fanciful idea, often stated in figurative language. | 31 | |
| 3642532033 | concrete detail | A highly specific, particular, often real, actual, or tangible detail; the opposite of abstract. | 32 | |
| 3642532034 | connotation | The suggested or implied meaning of a word or phrase. | 33 | |
| 3642532035 | consonance | The repetition of two or more consonant sounds in a group of words or a unit of speech or writing. | 34 | |
| 3642532036 | critique | An analysis or assessment of a thing or situation for the purpose of determining its nature, limitations, and conformity to a set of standards. | 35 | |
| 3642532037 | cynic | One who expects and observes nothing but the worst of human conduct. | 36 | |
| 3642532038 | deductive reasoning | A method of reasoning by which specific definitions, conclusions, and theorems are drawn from general principles. | 37 | |
| 3642532039 | denotation | The dictionary definition of a word. | 38 | |
| 3642532041 | description | A rhetorical mode; Creation of a picture using words in order to explain observations about objects, people, events, and scenes. | 39 | |
| 3642532043 | diction | The choice of words in oral and written discourse. | 40 | |
| 3642532044 | didactic | Having an instructive purpose; intending to convey information or teach a lesson, usually in a dry, pompous manner. | 41 | |
| 3642532045 | digression | That portion of discourse that wanders or departs from the main subject or topic. | 42 | |
| 3642532047 | dramatic irony | A circumstance in which the audience or reader knows more about a situation than a character. | 43 | |
| 3642532048 | elegy | A poem or prose selection that laments or meditates on the passing or death of someone or something of value. | 44 | |
| 3642532049 | ellipsis | Three periods (...)indicating the omission of words in a thought or quotation. | 45 | |
| 3642532050 | elliptical construction | A sentence containing a deliberate omission of words. | 46 | |
| 3642532051 | empathy | A feeling of association or identification with an object or person. | 47 | |
| 3642532057 | euphemism | A mild or less offensive usage for a harsh or blunt term. Example: "Enhanced interrogation techniques" for "torture" | 48 | |
| 3642532058 | exegesis | A detailed analysis or interpretation of a work of prose or poetry. | 49 | |
| 3642532059 | exposé | A factual piece of writing that reveals weaknesses, faults, frailties, or other shortcomings. | 50 | |
| 3642532060 | exposition | The background and events that lead to the presentation of the main idea or purpose of an essay or other work; setting forth the meaning or purpose of a piece of writing or discourse. | 51 | |
| 3642532061 | explication | The interpretation or analysis of a text. | 52 | |
| 3642532064 | fallacy, fallacious reasoning | An incorrect belief or supposition based on faulty data, defective evidence, false information, or flawed logic that are often used unintentionally. | 53 | |
| 3642532066 | farce | A comedy that contains an extravagant and nonsensical disregard of seriousness, although it may have a serious, scornful purpose. | 54 | |
| 3642532067 | figure of speech, figurative language | Contrasts literal language; writing that is not meant to be taken literally. | 55 | |
| 3642532068 | frame | A structure that provides a premise or setting for a narrative or other discourse. | 56 | |
| 3642532069 | genre | A term used to describe literary forms, such as novel, play, and essay. | 57 | |
| 3642532072 | hubris | Excessive pride that often affects tone. | 58 | |
| 3642532074 | hyperbole | Overstatement; gross exaggeration for rhetorical effect. | 59 | |
| 3642532075 | idyll | A lyric poem or passage that describes a kind of ideal life or place. | 60 | |
| 3642532076 | imagery | A word or phrase representing that which can be seen, touched, tasted, smelled, or felt. | 61 | |
| 3642532078 | indirect quotation | A rendering of a quotation in which actual words are not stated but only approximated or paraphrased. | 62 | |
| 3642532079 | inductive reasoning | A method of reasoning in which a number of specific facts or examples are used to make a generalization. | 63 | |
| 3642532080 | inference | A conclusion or proposition arrived at by considering facts, observations, or some other specific data. | 64 | |
| 3642532081 | invective | A direct verbal assault; a denunciation; casting blame on someone or something. | 65 | |
| 3642532082 | irony | A mode of expression in which the intended meaning is the opposite of what is stated, often implying ridicule or light sarcasm; a state of affairs or events that is the reverse of what might have been expected. | 66 | |
| 3642532084 | lampoon | A mocking, satirical assault on a person or situation. | 67 | |
| 3642532085 | litotes | A form of understatement in which the negative of the contrary is used to achieve emphasis or intensity. Example: "Not bad" for "good" "She's no beauty" for "She's ugly." | 68 | |
| 3642532086 | loose sentence | A sentence that follows the customary word order of English sentences, i.e., subject-verb-objects. The main idea of the sentence is presented first and is then followed by one or more subordinate clauses. AKA a cumulative sentence. | 69 | |
| 3642532089 | maxim | A saying or proverb expressing common wisdom or truth. Example: It's better to be safe than sorry. You're never too old to learn. | 70 | |
| 3642532090 | melodrama | A literary form in which events are exaggerated in order to create an extreme emotional response. | 71 | |
| 3642532091 | metaphor | A figure of speech that compares unlike objects. Example: My husband can eat a mountain of mashed potatoes. | 72 | |
| 3642532092 | extended metaphor | When several characteristics of the same objects are compared over the course of a literary work. | 73 | |
| 3642532095 | metonymy | A figure of speech that uses the name of one thing to represent something else with which it is associated. Example: The White House issued an executive order. Let me give you a hand. | 74 | |
| 3642532097 | mock epic | A parody of traditional epic form. | 75 | |
| 3642532098 | mock solemnity | Feigned or deliberately artificial seriousness, often for satirical purposes. | 76 | |
| 3642532101 | mood | The emotional tone or prevailing atmosphere in a work of literature or other discourse, usually through diction choices, syntax, setting and/or events. | 77 | |
| 3642532105 | moral | A brief and often simplistic lesson that a reader may infer from a work of literature. | 78 | |
| 3642532106 | motif | A phrase, idea, or event that through repetition serves to unify or convey a theme in an essay or other discourse. | 79 | |
| 3642532109 | narrative | A rhetorical mode that answers "what happened" to tell real or fictional stories, to relate historical events, present personal experiences or support event analysis. | 80 | |
| 3642532110 | naturalism | A term often used as a synonym for realism; also a view of experience that is generally characterized as bleak and pessimistic. | 81 | |
| 3642532111 | non sequitur | A statement or idea that fails to follow logically from the one before. Latin for "does not follow" | 82 | |
| 3642532112 | objective | (adj.) Of or relating to facts and reality, as opposed to private and personal feelings and attitudes. | 83 | |
| 3642532115 | omniscient narrator | A narrator with unlimited awareness, understanding, and insight of characters, setting, background, and all other elements of the story. | 84 | |
| 3642532116 | onomatopoeia | The use of words whose sounds suggest their meaning. | 85 | |
| 3642532117 | oxymoron | A term consisting of contradictory elements juxtaposed to create a paradoxical effect. Examples: Jumbo shrimp; Pretty ugly; Cruel kindness | 86 | |
| 3642532118 | parable | A story consisting of events from which a moral or spiritual truth may be derived. | 87 | |
| 3642532119 | paradox | A statement that seems self-contradictory but is nevertheless true. Example: "You can't get a job without experience, but you can't get experience without a job." | 88 | |
| 3642532120 | parallel structure/balanced sentences | Sentence construction which places equal grammatical constructions near each other; repeated grammatical construction. Used to add emphasis, organization, and pacing to writing. | 89 | |
| 3642532121 | parody | An imitation of a work meant to ridicule its style and subject. | 90 | |
| 3642532122 | paraphrase | A version of a text put into simple, everyday words or summarized for brevity. | 91 | |
| 3642532125 | pathos | One of Aristotle's three persuasive appeals directed toward the audience's emotions. | 92 | |
| 3642532126 | pedantic | Used to describe words, phrases, and tones that is too narrowly academic instead of broad and humane; excessive use of big words to "show off". | 93 | |
| 3642532127 | periodic sentence | A sentence that departs from the usual word order of English sentences by expressing its main thought only at the end. In other words, the particulars in the sentence are presented before the idea they support. Example: His confidence broken, his limbs shaking, his collar wet with perspiration, he doubted whether he could ever again appear before an audience. | 94 | |
| 3642532128 | persona | The role or facade that a writer assumes or depicts to a reader or other audience. | 95 | |
| 3642532129 | personification | A figure of speech in which objects and animals are given human characteristics. | 96 | |
| 3642532139 | proverb | A short pithy statement of general truth that condenses common experience into memorable form. Example: Absence makes the heart grow fonder. | 97 | |
| 3642532140 | pseudonym | A false name or alias used by writers. | 98 | |
| 3642532141 | pulp fiction | Novels written for mass consumption, often emphasizing exciting and titillating plots. | 99 | |
| 3642532142 | pun | A humorous play on words, using similar-sounding or identical words to suggest different meanings. | 100 | |
| 3642532143 | realism | The depiction of people, things, and events as they really are without idealization or exaggeration for effect. | 101 | |
| 3642532144 | rebuttal/ refutation | The part of discourse wherein opposing arguments are anticipated and answered. | 102 | |
| 3642532145 | reiteration | Repetition of an idea using different words, often for emphasis or other effect. | 103 | |
| 3642532146 | repetition | Reuse of the same words, phrases, or ideas for rhetorical effect, usually to emphasize a point. | 104 | |
| 3642532147 | retraction | The withdrawal of a previously stated idea or opinion. | 105 | |
| 3642532148 | rhetoric | The art of effective communication and its study of the relationship between writer, audience, and subject. | 106 | |
| 3642532149 | rhetorical mode | A general term that identifies discourse according to its chief purpose; a way or method of presenting a subject to support a thesis or hypothesis. Includes exposition, argumentation, description, and narration. | 107 | |
| 3642532150 | exposition | to explain, analyze, or discuss an idea | 108 | |
| 3642532151 | argumentation | to prove a point or to persuade | 109 | |
| 3642532153 | narration | Answers the question "What happened?" to tell real or fictional stories, to relate historical events, to present personal experiences, or support event analysis. | 110 | |
| 3642532154 | rhetorical question | A question to which the audience already knows the answer; a question asked merely for effect with no answer expected. | 111 | |
| 3642532159 | sarcasm | A sharp, caustic attitude conveyed in words through jibes, taunts, or other remarks; differs from irony, which is more subtle. | 112 | |
| 3642532160 | satire | A literary style used to poke fun at, attack, or ridicule and idea, vice, or foible, often for the purpose of inducing change. | 113 | |
| 3642532161 | sentence structure | The arrangement of the parts of a sentence. A sentence may be simple, compound, or complex. Sentences may also contain any of these structures in combination with each other. Each variation leaves a different impression on the reader, and along with other rhetorical devices, may create a countless array of effects. | 114 | |
| 3642532162 | simple sentence | An independent clause with one subject and one verb | 115 | |
| 3642532163 | compound sentence | two or more independent clauses joined by a conjunction | 116 | |
| 3642532164 | complex sentence | an independent claus plus one or more dependent clauses | 117 | |
| 3642532167 | setting | An environment that consists of time, place, historical milieu, and social, political, and even spiritual circumstances. | 118 | |
| 3642532168 | simile | A figurative comparison using the words like or as. | 119 | |
| 3642532169 | stream of consciousness | A style of writing in which the author tries to reproduce the random flow of thoughts in the human mind. | 120 | |
| 3642532170 | style | The manner in which an author uses and arranges words, shapes ideas, forms sentences, and creates a structure to convey ideas. | 121 | |
| 3642532171 | stylistic devices | A general term referring to diction, syntax, tone, figurative language, and all other elements that contribute to the "style" or manner of a given piece of discourse. | 122 | |
| 3642532174 | subtext | The implied meaning that underlies the main meaning of an essay or other work. | 123 | |
| 3642532175 | syllogism | A form of deductive reasoning in which given certain ideas or facts, other ideas or facts must follow. (think transitive property) | 124 | |
| 3642532176 | symbolism | The use of one object to evoke ideas and associations not literally part of the original object. | 125 | |
| 3642532177 | synecdoche | A figure of speech in which a part signifies the whole or the whole signifies the part. When the name of a material stands for the thing itself, that, too, is this. Example: Check out my new wheels! | 126 | |
| 3642532178 | syntax | The grammatical arrangement or grouping of words | 127 | |
| 3642532179 | theme | The main idea of meaning, often an abstract idea upon which an essay or other form of discourse is built. | 128 | |
| 3642532180 | thesis/claim | The main idea of a piece of discourse; the statement or proposition that a speaker or writer wishes to advance, illustrate, prove, or defend. | 129 | |
| 3642532181 | tone | The author's attitude toward the subject being written about as revealed by diction choices, figurative language, and organization. This is the characteristic emotion that pervades a work or part of a work -- the spirt or quality that is the word's emotional essence. | 130 | |
| 3642532183 | transition | A stylistic device used to create a link between ideas. These often endow discourse with continuity and coherence. | 131 | |
| 3642532184 | trope | The generic name for a figure of speech or archetype such as image, symbol, simile, and metaphor. | 132 | |
| 3642532185 | understatement | A restrained statement that departs from what could be said; a studied avoidance of emphasis or exaggeration, often to create a particular effect. | 133 | |
| 3642532186 | verbal irony | A discrepancy between the true meaning of a situation and the literal meaning of the written or spoken words. | 134 | |
| 3642532189 | voice/persona | The real or assumed personality used by a writer or speaker. | 135 | |
| 3642532190 | active voice | (refers to the use of verbs) A verb is in this when it expresses an action performed by its subject. Stylistically, this leads to more economical and vigorous writing. | 136 | |
| 3642532191 | passive voice | (refers to the use of verbs) A verb is in this when it expresses an action performed upon its subject or when the subject is the result of the action. | 137 | |
| 3642532192 | whimsy | An object, device, or creation that is fanciful or rooted in unreality. | 138 | |
| 3642624264 | illustration | Examples to support key ideas to develop paragraphs beyond a topic sentence or thesis. Several types exists: Facts, statistics, example, personal experience, quotation, case study, comparison, process. | 139 | |
| 3790140654 | ethos | means being convinced by the credibility of the author as we tend to believe those we trust, those we like, or those who are seen as experts or worthy of respect. | 140 | |
| 3790145687 | logos | persuasion by use of logic and reasoning through valid arguments and true premises. Generally considered the strongest form of persuasion. | 141 | |
| 3790149670 | concession | Accepting part or all of the opposing viewpoint, often in order to make one's own argument stronger through demonstrating that one is willing to accept what is reasonable and true, even if presented in opposition. Also called multiple perspectives as the author is accepting more than one position as true. | 142 | |
| 3790159792 | conditional statement | an if-then statement consisting of two parts, an antecedent and a consequence that is often used as premises in an argument. Example: If you study hard, then you will pass the exam. | 143 | |
| 3790168555 | contradiction | This occurs when someone asserts two mutually exclusive propositions, as both can not be true, one must be false. Example: I love you and I don't love you. | 144 | |
| 3790193442 | bandwagon fallacy | The claim, as evidence for an idea, that many people believe or used to believe; the idea that if something is popular it must be true. Example: Ten thousand people showed up to the rally. That many people can't be wrong. | 145 | |
| 3790213630 | bad/false analogy | Claiming that two situations are highly similar when they clearly aren't. Example: Adoptions should not cost more than abortions. | 146 | |
| 3790219438 | false cause | Assuming that because two events happened, the first must have caused the second. Example: Recessions tend to follow a Republican presidency so we must elect a Democrat. | 147 | |
| 3845953426 | hasty generalization/ stereotyping | Fallacy committed when a generalization is based on too little or unrepresentative data. Example: My uncle didn't go to college and he makes a ton of money, so those who don't go to college can do as well as those who do. | 148 | |
| 3845960840 | slippery slope | Fallacy whereby an assumption, once started, will continue to its most extreme possible outcome. | 149 | |
| 3845966900 | anaphora | A type of parallelism where the repetition occurs at the beginning of two or more sentences or clauses. Example: I came, I saw, I conquered. | 150 | |
| 3845971550 | chiasmus | A type of parallelism where the same words are used in succession but the order of the words are reversed in the second occurrence. Example: Men murdered women and women murdered men. | 151 | |
| 3845979086 | zeugma or syllepsis | A type of parallelism where a single word governs or modifies two or more words, and the meaning of the first word must change for each of the other words it modifies. Example: The butler killed the lights, and then the mistress. Example: I dressed myself and then the salad. | 152 | |
| 3845986370 | polysyndeton | When a writer creates a list and separates each item with a conjunction. Example: I woke up, and brushed my teeth, and took a shower, and made the coffee before feeding the cat. | 153 | |
| 3845995223 | asyndeton | When a writer creates a list but eliminates conjunctions. Example: Chicago was a city of possibility, danger, excitement, fear. | 154 |
