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AP Language and Composition Vocabulary Flashcards

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11354863313Asyndetonnoun, the omission of conjunctions like "and" or "but" where they would normally be used to make a speech more dramatic and effective by speeding up its rhythm and pace. This is a rhetorical device.0
11354863314Polysyndetonnoun, using several conjunctions in close succession, especially where some might be omitted (as in `he ran and jumped and laughed for joy'), a rhetorical device opposite to asyndeton.1
11354863316Litotesnoun, understatement for rhetorical effect (especially when expressing an affirmative by negating its contrary). "He's not the brightest bulb in the lamp," meaning "He's dumb" Or "She's no beauty queen" meaning "She's ugly"2
11354863317Parallelismnoun, similarity by virtue of corresponding. Parallelism is used in sentence construction to give matching structure. In the sentence, "I like to read, dancing, and fighting off Zombie attacks," the parts of the list are not parallel. You can revise the sentence for parallelism: "I like to read, to dance, and to fight off Zombie attacks."3
11354863320Antithesisnoun, exact opposite, An antithesis wouldn't exist without a thesis because it works as a comparison. Though the counterculture was strong in America in 1968, voters elected Richard Nixon, the antithesis of a hippie.4
11354863321Anaphoranoun, repetition of a word or phrase at the beginning of successive clauses. Used to show emphasis in speech or writing, anaphora is a popular tool for politicians, religious leaders, lyricists, and poets.In Martin Luther King Jr's most famous speech, he said "I have a dream" eight different times.5
11354863323Anadiplosisnoun, repetition of the final words of a sentence or line at the beginning of the next. Part of another figure of speech Chiasmus, every anadiplosis does not necessarily reverse its structure like it is done in chiasmus. "Forget what you want to remember, and remember what you want to forget," is an example of chiasmus (as it involves a reversal of structure in the second clause) and anadiplosis as word "remember" marks the end of one clause and the start of the subsequent clause. "The land of my fathers and my fathers can have it." is an example of anadiplosis involving a typical repetition of the word "my father" but, unlike chiasmus, the structure of the final clause is not reversed.6
11354863336Similenoun, a figure of speech that expresses a resemblance between things of different kinds (usually formed with `like' or `as'). Use a simile when describing a comparison between two fundamentally different things, such as: "His voice was smooth, like butter in a warm pan."7
11354863337Analogynoun, drawing a comparison in order to show a similarity in some respect. When you draw an analogy between two things, you compare them for the purpose of explanation. The movie character Forest Gump made a silly analogy famous: "Life is like a box of chocolates." If a scientist explains that the earth's forests function as its lungs, we understand the analogy to mean that both trees and lungs take in important elements from the air.8
11354863338MetaphorA figure of speech in which a word or phrase is applied to an object or action to which it is not literally applicable, used to refer to something that it does not literally denote in order to suggest a similarity. You make an analogy between two things to show how one resembles the other in some way. When a character from Shakespeare calls the world his oyster, that's his boastful way of saying that all the riches of the world are his for the taking, like plucking a pearl from an oyster shell.9
11354863342PersonificationPersonification is a figure of speech in which a thing, an idea or an animal is given human attributes. The non-human objects are portrayed in such a way that we feel they have the ability to act like human beings. Look at my car. She is a beauty, isn't it so?, The wind whispered through dry grass, The flowers danced in the gentle breeze, Time and tide waits for none.10
11354863343HyperboleHyperbole is a figure of speech, which involves an exaggeration of ideas for the sake of emphasis. Praising your favorite sports team is one thing, but if you call the team the most incredible group of humans ever to walk the earth, then you're going overboard and indulging in hyperbole.11
11354863344AllusionAllusion is a brief and indirect reference to a person, place, thing or idea of historical, cultural, literary or political significance. It does not describe in detail the person or thing to which it refers. It is just a passing comment and the writer expects the reader to possess enough knowledge to spot the allusion and grasp its importance in a text. The main thing to remember is that an allusion is a brief hint or a quick mention. It's meant to bring to mind a particular subject, but it always avoids getting into it in great depth.12
11354863346OxymoronOxymoron is a figure of speech in which two opposite ideas are joined to create an effect. The common oxymoron phrase is a combination of an adjective proceeded by a noun with contrasting meanings, e.g. "cruel kindness" or "living death". However, the contrasting words/phrases are not always glued together. The contrasting ideas may be spaced out in a sentence, e.g. "In order to lead, you must walk behind." "the shackles of love straiten'd him His honour rooted in dishonored stood And faith unfaithful kept him falsely true"13
11354863350AlliterationA stylistic device in which a number of words, having the same first consonant sound, occur close together in a series. An important point to remember here is that alliteration does not depend on letters but on sounds. So the phrase not knotty is alliterative, but cigarette chase is not. But a better butter makes a batter better, A big bully beats a baby boy, Dunkin' Donuts, Best Buy, "The fair breeze blew, the white foam flew, The furrow followed free; We were the first that ever burst Into that silent sea."14
11354863351OnomatopoeiaA word, which imitates the natural sounds of a thing. It creates a sound effect that mimics the thing described, making the description more expressive and interesting. In addition to the sound they represent, many onomatopoeic words have developed meanings of their own. For example, "whisper" not only represents the sound of people talking quietly, but also describes the action of people talking quietly. "Hark, hark! Bow-wow. The watch-dogs bark! Bow-wow. Hark, hark! I hear The strain of strutting chanticleer Cry, 'cock-a-diddle-dow!'"15
11354863353EnthymemeAn argumentative statement in which the writer or the speaker omits one of the major or minor premises, does not clearly pronounce it, or keeps this premise implied. The omitted premise in enthymeme remains understandable even if is not clearly expressed. For instance, "Where there is smoke, there is fire." (The hidden premise: The smoke causes fire.) This is known as truncated or rhetoric syllogism. Its purpose is to influence the audience and allow them to make inferences. They can be easily recognized, as these statements comes after "because." "[M]y parents decide to buy my brothers guns. These are not 'real' guns. They shoot 'BBs,' copper pellets my brothers say will kill birds. Because I am a girl, I do not get a gun."16
11354863354ClimaxAs a stylistic device, the term climax refers to a literary device in which words, phrases and clauses are arranged in an order to increase their importance within the sentence. "This note was a promise that all men, yes, black men as well as white men, would be guaranteed the unalienable Rights of Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness." OR Climax is that particular point in a narrative at which the conflict or tension hits the highest point. Climax is a structural part of a plot and is at times referred to as a crisis. It is a decisive moment or a turning point in a storyline at which the rising action turns around into a falling action. Thus, a climax is the point at which a conflict or crisis reaches its peak that calls for a resolution or conclusion.17
11354863356AntimetaboleAntimetabole is a literary term or device that involves repeating a phrase in reverse order. You like it; it likes you" and "Fair is foul and foul is fair." When a sentence is repeated after reversing it so as to convey an idea or stress on a point, it is called chiasmus. In an antimetabole the words and grammatical structure is also reversed because just reversing the meaning is not enough. All the antimetaboles are chiasmus, but not all instances of chiasmus are antimetaboles. "You stood up for America, now America must stand up for you."18
11354863357AntiphrasisAntiphrasis is a figurative speech in which a phrase or word is employed in a way that is opposite to its literal meaning in order to create an ironic or comic effect. It is the use of phrases or words in their opposite sense than the real meaning. "Yes, I killed him. I killed him for money-and a woman-and I didn't get the money and I didn't get the woman. Pretty, isn't it....." (Double Indemnity by Billy Wilder and Raymond). Here, the speaker is making ironic statement by using opposite sense of the word pretty. He has committed murder, yet he describes his act "pretty".19

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