Terms : Hide Images
| 7093581038 | Antithesis | anˈtiTHəsəs | the presentation of two contrasting images. The ideas are balanced by phrase, clause, or paragraphs. "To be or not to be . . ." "It was the best of times; it was the worst of times . . ." "Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country . . ." |  | 0 |
| 7093581039 | Oxymoron | ˌäksəˈmôrˌän | From the Greek for "pointedly foolish," ___ is a figure of speech wherein the author groups apparently contradictory terms. Simple examples include "jumbo shrimp" and "cruel kindness." |  | 1 |
| 7093581041 | Synecdoche | səˈnekdəkē | A figure of speech that utilizes a part as representative of the whole. "All hands on deck" is an example. |  | 2 |
| 7093581043 | Anaphora | əˈnaf(ə)rə | repetition of a word, phrase, or clause at the beginning of two or more sentences in a row. This is a deliberate form of repetition and helps make the writer's point more coherent. |  | 3 |
| 7093581044 | Euphony | ˈyo͞ofənē | the pleasant, mellifluous presentation of sounds in a literary work. |  | 4 |
| 7093581046 | Metonomy | məˈtänəmē | a term from the Greek meaning "changed label" or "substitute name" __ is a figure of speech in which the name of one object is substituted for that of another closely associated with it. For example: a news release that claims "The White House declared" rather than "The President declared" |  | 5 |
| 7093581050 | Cacophony | kəˈkäfənē | harsh and discordant sounds in a line or passage in a literary word. |  | 6 |
| 7093581054 | Invective | inˈvektiv | an emotionally violent, verbal denunciation or attack using strong, abusive language. |  | 7 |
| 7093581055 | Understatement | ˈəndərˌstātmənt | the opposite of exaggeration. It is a technique for developing irony and/or humor where one writes or says less than intended. |  | 8 |
| 7093581057 | Homily | ˈhäməlē | This term literally means "sermon," but more informally, it can include any serious talk, speech, or lecture involving moral or spiritual advice. |  | 9 |
| 7093581068 | Periodic Sentence Structure | A sentence that presents its central meaning in a main clause at the end. The independent clause is preceded by a phrase or clause that cannot stand alone. The effect is to add emphasis and structural variety. |  | 10 |
| 7093581074 | Syllogism | ˈsiləˌjizəm | From the Greek for "reckoning together," a __ is a deductive system of formal logic that presents two premises that inevitably lead to a sound conclusion. |  | 11 |
| 7093581108 | Ellipsis | əˈlipsis | Indicated by a series of three periods, the __ indicates that some material has been omitted from a given text. |  | 12 |
| 7093581110 | Didactic | dīˈdaktik | writing whose purpose is to instruct or to teach. A ___ work is usually formal and focuses on moral or ethical concerns. |  | 13 |
| 7093581111 | Ambiguity ˌambəˈɡyo͞owədē | an event or situation that may be interpreted in more than one way. |  | 14 |
| 7093581118 | Colloquial | kəˈlōkwēəl | the use of slang in writing, often to create local color and to provide an informal tone. Huckleberry Finn in written in a __ style. |  | 15 |
| 7093581130 | Asyndeton | əˈsindəˌtän | Commas used (with no conjunction) to separate a series of words. The parts are emphasized equally when the conjunction is omitted; in addition, the use of commas with no intervening conjunction speeds up the flow of the sentence. X, Y, Z as opposed to X, Y, and Z. |  | 16 |
| 7093635648 | Antimetabole | AN-ti-mə-TAB-ə-lee | A sentence strategy in which the arrangement of ideas in the second clause is a reversal o the first; it adds power to the sentence. |  | 17 |
| 7093636880 | Anticlimax | ˌan(t)ēˈklīˌmaks,ˌanˌtīˈklīˌmaks | In writing, denotes a writer's intentional drop from the serious and elevated to the trivial and lowly, in order to achieve a comic or satiric effect. An event (as at the end of a series) that is strikingly less important than what has preceded it. The transition towards this ending. |  | 18 |
| 7093643118 | Anastrophe | əˈnastrəfē | Inversion of the normal syntactical structure of a sentence. Ex. "Ready are you?" |  | 19 |
| 7093653571 | Archaic Diction | ärˈkāik | Language that is old-fashioned -not completely obsolete but no longer in current use. |  | 20 |
| 7093665391 | Digression | ˌdīˈɡreSH(ə)n | a temporary departure from the main subject in speaking or writing |  | 21 |
| 7093669100 | Conceit | kənˈsēt | An elaborate, extended, and sometimes surprising comparison between things that, at first sight, do not have much in common ; a fanciful expression, usually in the form of an extended metaphor or surprising analogy between seemingly dissimilar objects. A conceit displays intellectual cleverness as a result of the unusual comparison being made. |  | 22 |
| 7093676639 | Elegiac | ˌeləˈjīək | mournful over what has passed or been lost; often used to describe tone |  | 23 |
| 7093720425 | Epigram | ˈepəˌɡram | a brief witty statement |  | 24 |
| 7093722199 | Inverted Syntax | reversing the normal word order of a sentence |  | 25 |
| 7093723065 | Jargon | ˈjärɡən | the special language of a profession or group |  | 26 |
| 7197556549 | Juxtaposition | ˌjəkstəpəˈziSH(ə)n | Placing things side by side for the purposes of comparison. |  | 27 |
| 7197580394 | Litotes | ˈlīdəˌtēz,līˈtōdēz,ˈlidəˌtēz | A particular form of understatement, generated by denying the opposite of the statement which otherwise would be used. |  | 28 |
| 7197583281 | Non-sequitur | A non sequitur, in formal logic, is an invalid argument. In a non sequitur, the conclusion could be either true or false, but the argument nonetheless asserts the conclusion to be true and is thus fallacious. |  | 29 |
| 7197585537 | Oversimplification | ˈˌōvərˌsimpləfəˈkāSHən | When a writer obscures or denies the complexity of the issues in an argument |  | 30 |
| 7197587697 | Paradox | ˈperəˌdäks | A contradiction or dilemma |  | 31 |
| 7197588957 | Parallel Syntactic Structure | Same pattern of words to show that two or more words or ideas are of equal importance and to help the reader comprehend what is being written. | 32 | |
| 7197589496 | Pedantic | pəˈdan(t)ik | tending to show off one's learning |  | 33 |
| 7197590167 | Pedantry | ˈped(ə)ntrē | Act of showing off learning in a manner that is needless and unimaginative |  | 34 |
| 7197590971 | Polemic | pəˈlemik | controversy; argument; verbal attack |  | 35 |
| 7197771743 | Polysyndeton | Deliberate use of many conjunctions |  | 36 |
| 7197773344 | Synesthesia | ˌsinəsˈTHēZHə | describing one kind of sensation in terms of another ("a loud color", "a sweet sound") |  | 37 |
| 7197775696 | Trope | trōp | a figurative or metaphorical use of a word or expression |  | 38 |
| 7197776176 | Zeugma | ˈzo͞oɡmə | a device in which a number of items in a sentence are linked together by a shared word |  | 39 |
