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AP Language and Composition Terms Flashcards

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6812512667AlliterationThe repetition of the same sound or letter at the beginning of consecutive words or syllables.0
6812512668AllusionAn indirect reference, often to another text or an historic event.1
6812512669Ambiguityquality of being intentionally unclear. Events or situations that are ambiguous can be interpreted in more than one way2
6812512670AnalogyAn extended comparison between two seemingly dissimilar things.3
6812512671Analysisthe process of examining the components of a literary work4
6812512672AnaphoraThe repetition of words at the beginning of successive clauses.5
6812512673AnecdoteA short account of an interesting event.6
6812512674AnnotationExplanatory or critical notes added to a text.7
6812512675AntecedentThe noun to which a later pronoun refers.8
6812512676AntithesisParallel structure that juxtaposes contrasting ideas.9
6812512677AphorismA short, astute statement of a general truth.10
6812512678Archaic dictionThe use of words common to an earlier time period; antiquated language.11
6812512679ArgumentA statement put forth and supported by evidence.12
6812512680Aristotelian triangleA diagram that represents a rhetorical situation as the relationship among the speaker, the subject, and the audience (see rhetorical triangle).13
6812512681AssertionAn emphatic statement; declaration. An assertion supported by evidence becomes an argument.14
6812512682Assonancethe repeated use of a vowel sound15
6812512683AssumptionA belief or statement taken for granted without proof.16
6812512684Asyndetonleaving out conjunctions between words, phrases, clauses.17
6812512685AttitudeThe speaker's position on a subject as revealed through his or her tone.18
6812512686AudienceOne's listener or readership; those to whom a speech or piece of writing is addressed.19
6812512687AuthorityA reliable, respected source—someone with knowledge.20
6812512688Biasprejudice or predisposition toward one side of a subject or issue21
6812512689Chiasmusthe opposite of parallel construction; inverting the second of the two phrases that would otherwise be in parallel form.22
6812512690CiteIdentifying a part of a piece of writing as being derived from a source.23
6812512691ClaimAn assertion, usually supported by evidence.24
6812512692Close readingA careful reading that is attentive to organization, figurative language, sentence structure, vocabulary, and other literary and structural elements of a text.25
6812512693ColloquialismAn informal or conversational use of language.26
6812512694Common groundShared beliefs, values, or positions.27
6812512695ConcessionA reluctant acknowledgment or yielding.28
6812512696ConnotationThat which is implied by a word, as opposed to the word's literal meaning (see denotation).29
6812512697Consonancethe same consonant sound in words with different vowel sounds.30
6812512698ContextWords, events, or circumstances that help determine meaning.31
6812512699CounterargumentA challenge to a position; an opposing argument.32
6812512700Credibleworthy of belief; trustworthy33
6812512701DeductionReasoning from general to specific.34
6812512702DenotationThe literal meaning of a word; its dictionary definition.35
6812512703DictionWord choice.36
6812512704EpigramA brief witty statement.37
6812512705EthosA Greek term referring to the character of a person; one of Aristotle's three rhetorical appeals (see logos and pathos).38
6812512706Euphemismsubstitution of an inoffensive word or phrase for another that would be harsh, offensive, or embarrassing. A euphemism makes something sound better than it is but is usually more wordy than the original.39
6812512707Explication of textExplanation of a text's meaning through an analysis of all of its constituent parts, including the literary devices used; also called close reading.40
6812512708Figurative languageThe use of tropes or figures of speech; going beyond literal meaning to achieve literary effect.41
6812512709Figure of speechAn expression that strives for literary effect rather than conveying a literal meaning.42
6812512710Flashbackinterruption of a narrative by the introduction of an earlier event or by an image of a past experience.43
6812512711Foreshadowinghints at what is to come. It is sometimes noticeable only in hindsight, but usually it is enough to set the reader wondering.44
6812512712Genrethe category into which a piece of writing can be classified—poetry, prose, drama. Each genre has its own conventions and standards.45
6812512713HyperboleExaggeration for the purpose of emphasis.46
6812512714ImageryVivid use of language that evokes a reader's senses (sight, smell, taste, touch, hearing).47
6812512715InductionReasoning from specific to general48
6812512716InversionA sentence in which the verb precedes the subject.49
6812512717IronyA contradiction between what is said and what is meant; incongruity between action and result.50
6812512718JuxtapositionPlacement of two things side by side for emphasis.51
6812512719LogosA Greek term that means "word"; an appeal to logic; one of Aristotle's three rhetorical appeals (see ethos and pathos) .52
6812512720MetaphorA figure of speech or trope through which one thing is spoken of as though it were something else, thus making an implicit comparison.53
6812512721MetonymyUse of an aspect of something to represent the whole.54
6812512722Modifiera word, phrase, or clause that qualifies or describes another word, phrase, or clause55
6812512723Moodfeeling or atmosphere a writer creates for a reader56
6812512724Motifa recurring subject, theme, or idea, etc., especially in a literary, artistic, or musical work57
6812512725NarrationRetelling an event or series of events.58
6812512726OccasionAn aspect of context; the cause or reason for writing.59
6812512727Onomatopoeiawords that imitate sounds60
6812512728OxymoronA figure of speech that combines two contradictory terms.61
6812512729ParadoxA statement that seems contradictory but is actually true.62
6812512730ParallelismThe repetition of similar grammatical or syntactical patterns.63
6812512731ParodyA piece that imitates and exaggerates the prominent features of another; used for comic effect or ridicule.64
6812512732PathosA Greek term that refers to suffering but has come to be associated with broader appeals to emotion; one of Aristotle's three rhetorical appeals (see ethos and logos).65
6812512733PersonaThe speaker, voice, or character assumed by the author of a piece of writing.66
6812512734PersonificationAssigning lifelike characteristics to inanimate objects.67
6812512735Point of viewperspective of the speaker or narrator in a literary work68
6812512736PolysyndetonThe deliberate use of a series of conjunctions.69
6812512737Premisemajor, minor, Two parts of a syllogism. The concluding sentence of a syllogism takes its predicate from the major premise and its subject from the minor premise. [Major premise: All mammals are warm-blooded. Minor premise: All horses are mammals. Conclusion: All horses are warm-blooded (see syllogism).]70
6812512738PropagandaA negative term for writing designed to sway opinion rather than present information.71
6812512739PurposeOne's intention or objective in a speech or piece of writing.72
6812512740RefuteTo discredit an argument, particularly a counterargument.73
6812512741Repetitiona word or phrase used more than once to emphasize an idea74
6812512742RhetoricThe study of effective, persuasive language use; according to Aristotle, use of the "available means of persuasion."75
6812512743Rhetorical modesPatterns of organization developed to achieve a specific purpose; modes include but are not limited to narration, description, comparison and contrast, cause and effect, definition, exemplification, classification and division, process analysis, and argumentation.76
6812512744Rhetorical questionA question asked more to produce an effect than to summon an answer.77
6812512745Rhetorical triangleA diagram that represents a rhetorical situation as the relationship among the speaker, the subject, and the audience (see Aristotelian triangle).78
6812512746SatireAn ironic, sarcastic, or witty composition that claims to argue for something, but actually argues against it.79
6812512747SchemeA pattern of words or sentence construction used for rhetorical effect.80
6812512748Sentence patternsThe arrangement of independent and dependent clauses into known sentence constructions—such as simple, compound, complex, or compound-complex.81
6812512749Sentence varietyUsing a variety of sentence patterns to create a desired effect.82
6812512750SimileA figure of speech that uses "like" or "as" to compare two things.83
6812512751SourceA book, article, person, or other resource consulted for information.84
6812512752SpeakerA term used for the author, speaker, or the person whose perspective (real or imagined) is being advanced in a speech or piece of writing.85
6812512753Stream of consciousnessa form of writing which replicates the way the human mind works. Ideas are presented in random order; thoughts are often unfinished.86
6812512754Structurethe particular way in which parts of a written work are combined87
6812512755StyleThe distinctive quality of speech or writing created by the selection and arrangement of words and figures of speech.88
6812512756SubjectIn rhetoric, the topic addressed in a piece of writing.89
6812512757SyllogismA form of deductive reasoning in which the conclusion is supported by a major and minor premise (see premise; major, and minor).90
6812512758Symbola concrete object, scene, or action which has deeper significance because it is associated with something else, often an important idea or theme in the work91
6812512759Synecdochea figure of speech where one part represents the entire object or vice versa92
6812512760SyntaxSentence structure.93
6812512761SynthesizeCombining or bringing together two or more elements to produce something more complex.94
6812512762ToneThe speaker's attitude toward the subject or audience.95
6812512763TropeArtful diction; the use of language in a nonliteral way; also called a figure of speech.96
6812512764UnderstatementLack of emphasis in a statement or point; restraint in language often used for ironic effect.97
6812512765VoiceIn grammar, a term for the relationship between a verb and a noun (active or passive voice). In rhetoric, a distinctive quality in the style and tone of writing.98
6812512766ZeugmaA construction in which one word (usually a verb) modifies or governs—often in different, sometimes incongruent ways—two or more words in a sentence.99

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