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AP Language Terms Flashcards

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3532424042Antecedent (grammar)the word, phrase, or clause referred to by a pronoun. The AP exam often asks for the antecedent of a given pronoun in a long, complex sentence or group of sentences0
3532634938Clause (grammar)a grammatical unit that contains BOTH a subject and a verb. An independent (or main) clause can stand alone as a sentence. A dependent (subordinate) clause can not stand alone as a sentence and must be accompanied by an independent clause.1
3532718798Example of clausesTanya did poorly on her exam (independent clause) because she went to the movies instead of studying (dependent clause).2
3543835439loose sentence (syntax)a type of sentence in which the main idea (independent clause) comes first, followed by dependent grammatical units such as phrases and clauses3
3543844727Why would an author use multiple loose sentences?to create an informal, relaxed or conversational tone4
3543855261Example of a loose sentenceI arrived at the San Diego airport after a long, bumpy ride and multiple delays.5
3543919770periodic sentence (syntax)opposite of loose sentence, a sentence that presents its central meaning in a main clause at the END ; this independent clause is preceded by a phrases of clause that cannot stand alone.6
3543964620Why would an author use periodic sentencesused to add structural variety and emphasis; a much stronger sentence than a loose sentence7
3543971218Example of a periodic sentenceAfter a long, bumpy flight and multiple delays, I arrived at the San Diego airport.8
3544153668parallelism (syntactical device)also referred to as parallel construction or parallel structure; refers to the grammatical framing of words, phrases, sentences of paragraphs to give structural similarity9
3544169927Why would an author use parallelism?many reasons but frequently used as an organizing force to attract the reader's attention, add emphasis or provide a rhythm10
3544198929Example of anaphora (syntactical device)"We shall not flag nor fail. We shall go on to the end. We shall fight in France, we shall fight on the seas...." Winston Churchill11
3544008088transition (grammar)effectively signal a shift from one idea to another Ex. furthermore, in addition, on the contrary, likewise12
3532449140Antithesis (device)the opposition or contrast of ideas; the direct opposite "It was the best of times; it was the worst of times."13
3532480540Aphorism (device)a terse (short) statement which expresses a general truth or moral principle.. Ex. "Early to bed, early to rise makes a man healthy, wealthy and wise." "To err is human, to forgive divine."14
3533237387conceit (device)an extended metaphor or surprising analogy between seemingly different objects. Ex. In Anne Bradstreet's poem, "An Author to her Book", the entire work is a comparison of her book of poetry to her child.15
3533277411euphemism (device)a less offensive substitute for a generally unpleasant word or concept Ex. "passed away" instead of "died" Sometimes used to adhere to political or social correctness or sometimes for humoar16
3533319967inference/infer (reader's strategy)to draw a reasonable conclusion from the information presented17
3533451232invective (device)an emotionally violent, verbal denunciation or attack using strong, abusive language18
3533457224litotes (device)a form of understatement that involves making an affirmative point by denying it's opposite Ex. "Not a bad idea" or "New York is not an ordinary city"19
3543992669synecdoche (device)a figure of speech in which a part of something is used to represent the whole, or less often, the whole is used to represent a part. Grey beards refer to old men; wheels refer to car20
3543869241metonymy (device)Greek for "substitute" name...a figure of speech in which the name of one object is substituted for that of another closely associated with it. "The White House announced..." represents the government or President. "Let me give you a hand." Hand represents help.21
3544184570Anaphora (device)a sub-type of parallelism, when the exact repetition of words or phrases are used at the BEGINNING of successive lines of sentences22
3544226415pedantic (type of language)an adjective that describes words, phrases or general tone that is overly academic, scholarly or bookish (a bit uppity)23
3533212606colloquial/colloquialism (type of language)the use of slang or informalities in speech or writing, used often with regional dialects, gives the work a conversational, familiar tone; not acceptable in formal writing24
3544266548style (rhetorical strategy)the choices an author makes in blending diction, syntax, figurative language and other literary devices; also can refer to the classification of authors to a group ex. romantic, transcendental (An author's style is why you might have a favorite author...you like his/her "style")25

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