A critical part of the AP test consists of analyzing reading. The words contained in this set will help you describe the tone of a passage, a critical part when analyzing writing. There are 155 terms so I'm sure you can find just the word to grasp the the tone you are looking for. Also, when you are writing, you can use any of these words as the tone you want your reader to find. If you are able to know the tone you want to get across, it becomes many times easier to express it.
Terms : Hide Images
| 4771078231 | flippant | lacking in seriousness; disrespectful, saucy | 0 | |
| 4771078232 | foreboding | a feeling of evil to come | 1 | |
| 4771078233 | formal | (of spoken and written language) adhering to traditional standards of correctness and without casual, contracted, and colloquial forms | 2 | |
| 4771078234 | forthright | characterized by directness in manner or speech | 3 | |
| 4771078235 | grave | causing fear or anxiety by threatening great harm; of great gravity or crucial importance | 4 | |
| 4771078236 | happy | experiencing pleasure or joy | 5 | |
| 4771078237 | haughty | having or showing arrogant superiority to and disdain of those one views as unworthy | 6 | |
| 4771078238 | harsh | extremely unkind or cruel; severe | 7 | |
| 4771078239 | humble | marked by meekness or modesty | 8 | |
| 4771078240 | indignant | angered at something unjust or wrong | 9 | |
| 4771078241 | inflammatory | causing excitement or anger; leading to violence or disorder | 10 | |
| 4771078242 | informative | providing or conveying information | 11 | |
| 4771078243 | inquisitive | showing curiosity | 12 | |
| 4771078244 | insolent | insulting in manner or speech | 13 | |
| 4771078245 | instructive | tending to increase knowledge or dissipate ignorance | 14 | |
| 4771078246 | insulting | expressing extreme contempt | 15 | |
| 4771078247 | intimate | marked by close aquaintance, association, or familiarity | 16 | |
| 4771078248 | ironic | suggesting an incongruity between what might be expected and what actually happens; given to irony, sarcastic | 17 | |
| 4771078249 | irreverant | showing a lack of respect | 18 | |
| 4771078250 | judgmental | critical; disapproving; authoritative and often having critical opinions | 19 | |
| 4771078251 | jovial | full of or showing high-spirited merriment | 20 | |
| 4771078252 | lyrical | Songlike; characterized by emotions, subjectivity, and imagination. | 21 | |
| 4771078253 | matter-of-fact | Concerned only with factual content rather than style or expression | 22 | |
| 4771078254 | meditative | deeply or seriously thoughtful | 23 | |
| 4771078255 | meloncholic | sad and depressed | 24 | |
| 4771078256 | mocking | treating with contempt or ridicule | 25 | |
| 4771078257 | morose | having a gloomy or sullen manner; not friendly or sociable | 26 | |
| 4771078258 | mournful | expressing sorrow | 27 | |
| 4771078259 | malicious | wishing or appearing to wish evil to others | 28 | |
| 4771078260 | nervous | causing or fraught with or showing anxiety; excited in anticipation | 29 | |
| 4771078261 | nostalgic | unhappy at being away and longing for familiar things or persons | 30 | |
| 4771078262 | objective | belonging to immediate experience of actual things or events; undistorted by emotion or personal bias | 31 | |
| 4771078263 | obsequious | attentive in an ingratiating or servile manner; attempting to win favor from influential people by flattery | 32 | |
| 4771078264 | outraged | angered at something unjust or wrong | 33 | |
| 4771078265 | paranoid | Exhibiting or characterized by extreme and irrational fear or distrust of others | 34 | |
| 4771078266 | passionate | having or expressing strong emotions | 35 | |
| 4771078267 | patronizing | treating with condescension; acting superior | 36 | |
| 4771078268 | peaceful | not violent or disorderly; calm and quiet | 37 | |
| 4771078269 | persuasive | tending or intended or having the power to induce action or belief | 38 | |
| 4771078270 | pessimistic | seeing the worst side of things; no hope | 39 | |
| 4771078271 | playful | full of fun and high spirits | 40 | |
| 4771078272 | pleading | expressing earnest entreaty | 41 | |
| 4771078273 | pleasant | affording pleasure | 42 | |
| 4771078274 | poignant | deeply affecting, touching; keen or sharp in taste or smell | 43 | |
| 4771078275 | pompous | overly self-important in speech and manner; excessively stately or ceremonious | 44 | |
| 4771078276 | pretentious | making claim to or creating an appearance of (often undeserved) importance or distinction | 45 | |
| 4771078277 | proud | having or displaying great dignity or nobility | 46 | |
| 4771078278 | quarrelsome | Always ready to argue; argumentative; confrontational | 47 | |
| 4771078279 | questioning | characterized by or indicating intellectual curiosity; inquiring | 48 | |
| 4771078280 | quizzical | perplexed (as if being expected to know something that you do not know); puzzled | 49 | |
| 4771078281 | reflective | illustrating innermost thoughts and emotions | 50 | |
| 4771078282 | regretful | repentant; apologetic | 51 | |
| 4771078283 | relaxed | made less tense or rigid; without strain or anxiety | 52 | |
| 4771078284 | reminiscent | evocative; suggestive of something already past | 53 | |
| 4771078285 | remorseful | feeling or expressing pain or sorrow for sins or offenses | 54 | |
| 4771078286 | resigned | submissive; compliant or yielding | 55 | |
| 4771078287 | respectful | full of or exhibiting respect | 56 | |
| 4771078288 | restrained | prudent; cool and formal in manner; not showy or obtrusive | 57 | |
| 4771078289 | ribald | humorously vulgar | 58 | |
| 4771078290 | reverent | feeling or showing profound respect or veneration | 59 | |
| 4771078291 | ridiculing | slightly contemptuous banter; making fun of | 60 | |
| 4771078292 | sad | experiencing or showing sorrow or unhappiness | 61 | |
| 4771078293 | sarcastic | the use of witty language used to insult or show displeasure or ridicule | 62 | |
| 4771078294 | sardonic | disdainfully or ironically humorous | 63 | |
| 4771078295 | sentimental | showing or causing a lot of emotion; excessive emotional response to experience; nauseatingly nostalgic and mawkish | 64 | |
| 4771078296 | serious | requiring effort or concentration; completely lacking in playfulness | 65 | |
| 4771078297 | shameful | (used of conduct or character) deserving or bringing disgrace or shame | 66 | |
| 4771078298 | sharp | having or demonstrating ability to recognize or draw fine distinctions; quick and forceful; marked by practical hardheaded intelligence | 67 | |
| 4771078299 | scornful | filled with contempt; showing disdain; angry; disgusted | 68 | |
| 4771078300 | sincere | characterized by a firm and humorless belief in the validity of your opinions | 69 | |
| 4771078301 | solemn | dignified and somber in manner or character and committed to keeping promises; serious; grave | 70 | |
| 4771078302 | sanguine | confidently optimistic and cheerful | 71 | |
| 4771078303 | whimsical | lightly acting in a fanciful or capricious manner; unpredictable | 72 | |
| 4771078304 | accusing | containing or expressing accusation | 73 | |
| 4771078305 | admiring | to regard with wonder, pleasure, approval, or respect | 74 | |
| 4771078306 | admonitory | 1. expressing reproof or reproach especially as a corrective 2. containing warning | 75 | |
| 4771078307 | affectionate | feeling or showing a great liking for a person or persons; loving; devoted; tender | 76 | |
| 4771078308 | aggravated | v. to make worse or more unpleasant; to annoy | 77 | |
| 4771078309 | agitated | physically disturbed or set in motion | 78 | |
| 4771078310 | ambivalent | characterized by a mixture of opposite feelings or attitudes | 79 | |
| 4771078311 | amiable | diffusing warmth and friendliness | 80 | |
| 4771078312 | agreeable | 1. to your own liking or feelings or nature 2. prepared to agree or consent | 81 | |
| 4771078313 | amused | pleasurably entertained, occupied, or diverted | 82 | |
| 4771078314 | anxious | mentally upset over possible misfortune or danger etc | 83 | |
| 4771078315 | apathetic | marked by a lack of interest | 84 | |
| 4771078316 | apologetic | offering or expressing apology | 85 | |
| 4771078317 | appreciative | having or showing gratitude, recognizing the value of someone or something | 86 | |
| 4771078318 | apprehensive | in fear or dread of possible evil or harm | 87 | |
| 4771078319 | arrogant | having or showing feelings of unwarranted importance out of overbearing pride | 88 | |
| 4771078320 | artificial | 1. contrived by art rather than nature 2. not genuine or natural | 89 | |
| 4771078321 | ashamed | feeling sorry for wrongdoing | 90 | |
| 4771078322 | authoratative | official, coming from a source that calls for ovedience or belief; dictatorial | 91 | |
| 4771078323 | baffled | perplexed by many conflicting situations or statements | 92 | |
| 4771078324 | bantering | teasing or making fun of in a playful, good-natured way | 93 | |
| 4771078325 | belligerent | given to fighting, warlike; combative, aggressive; one at war, one engaged in war | 94 | |
| 4771078326 | benevolent | generous in providing aid to others | 95 | |
| 4771078327 | bewildered | completely confused; puzzled | 96 | |
| 4771078328 | bitter | 1. harsh or corrosive in tone 2. very difficult to accept or bear 3. expressive of severe grief or regret | 97 | |
| 4771078329 | bored | uninterested because of frequent exposure or indulgence | 98 | |
| 4771078330 | brash | offensively bold | 99 | |
| 4771078331 | callous | emotionally hardened; unfeeling | 100 | |
| 4771078332 | candid | openly straightforward and direct without reserve or secretiveness | 101 | |
| 4771078333 | caustic | harsh or corrosive in tone; sarcastic | 102 | |
| 4771078334 | ceremonial | traditional; ritual; formal | 103 | |
| 4771078335 | cheery | bright and pleasant | 104 | |
| 4771078336 | choleric | quickly aroused to anger | 105 | |
| 4771078337 | clinical | 1. very objective and devoid of emotion; analytical 2. purely scientific; dispassionately curious; impersonal | 106 | |
| 4771078338 | coarse | lacking refinement or cultivation or taste | 107 | |
| 4771078339 | cold | 1. having lost freshness through passage of time 2. feeling or showing no enthusiasm | 108 | |
| 4771078340 | compassionate | showing recognition of unusually distressful circumstances; sympathetic | 109 | |
| 4771078341 | concerned | feeling or showing worry or solicitude | 110 | |
| 4771078342 | condemnatory | expressing negative judgment upon; accusing | 111 | |
| 4771078343 | condescending | possessing an attitude of superiority, patronizing | 112 | |
| 4771078344 | confident | having faith in oneself; self-reliant; sure | 113 | |
| 4771078345 | confused | to be uncertain or unclear about something | 114 | |
| 4771078346 | consoling | affording comfort or solace | 115 | |
| 4771078347 | contemplative | persistently or morbidly thoughtful | 116 | |
| 4771078348 | content | satisfy in a limited way | 117 | |
| 4771078349 | contradictory | unable to be both true at the same time | 118 | |
| 4771078350 | conventional | following accepted customs and proprieties | 119 | |
| 4771078351 | critical | 1. marked by a tendency to find and call attention to errors and flaws 2. being in or verging on a state of crisis or emergency | 120 | |
| 4771078352 | cruel | lacking or showing kindness or compassion or mercy | 121 | |
| 4771078353 | cynical | believing the worst of human nature and motives | 122 | |
| 4771078354 | dejected | affected or marked by low spirits | 123 | |
| 4771078355 | despairing | Hopeless, despondent, discouraged | 124 | |
| 4771078356 | desperate | showing extreme urgency or intensity especially because of great need or desire | 125 | |
| 4771078357 | detached | emotionally removed; free from emotional involvement; calm and objective; physically separate | 126 | |
| 4771078358 | didactic | instructive (especially excessively) | 127 | |
| 4771078359 | disdainful | having or showing arrogant superiority to and disdain of those one views as unworthy | 128 | |
| 4771078360 | disgruntled | in a state of sulky dissatisfaction | 129 | |
| 4771078361 | disgusted | having a strong distaste from surfeit | 130 | |
| 4771078362 | disinterested | unaffected by self-interest | 131 | |
| 4771078363 | distressed | in great pain or sorrow; upset; distraught | 132 | |
| 4771078364 | doubtful | unsettled in mind or opinion | 133 | |
| 4771078365 | dramatic | filled with action, emotion, or exciting qualities; vivid, striking | 134 | |
| 4771078366 | dreamy | Reflecting a preoccupation with pleasant thoughts that distract one from one's present surroundings. | 135 | |
| 4771078367 | droll | comical in an odd or whimsical manner | 136 | |
| 4771078368 | earnest | serious and important; not light and playful; sincere | 137 | |
| 4771078369 | ecstatic | feeling great rapture or delight | 138 | |
| 4771078370 | embarrassed | caused to feel self-conscious and uncomfortable | 139 | |
| 4771078371 | encouraging | giving courage or confidence or hope; furnishing support and encouragement | 140 | |
| 4771078372 | energetic | possessing or exerting or displaying energy | 141 | |
| 4771078373 | enthusiastic | having or showing great excitement and interest | 142 | |
| 4771078374 | excited | in an aroused state | 143 | |
| 4771078375 | erudite | having or showing profound knowledge | 144 | |
| 4771078376 | facetious | cleverly amusing in tone | 145 | |
| 4771078377 | factual | characterized by fact | 146 | |
| 4771078378 | fanciful | whimsical; visionary; imaginary; produced by imagination | 147 | |
| 4771078379 | fervent | sincerely or intensely felt | 148 | |
| 4771078380 | inexorably | not to be persuaded, moved, or stopped | 149 | |
| 4771078381 | idolatrous | of or relating to idoltry | 150 | |
| 4771078382 | allusive | implied; indirect reference | 151 | |
| 4771078383 | pedantic | showy of knowledge | 152 | |
| 4771078384 | terse | rudely direct | 153 | |
| 4771078385 | discordant | 1. disagreeing or incongruous 2. (of sounds) harsh and jarring because of a lack of harmony | 154 |
