AP Literature terms Flashcards

3569426621	synecdoche	figure of speech in which part is made to represent the whole or vice versa	0
3569428511	metonymy	substitution of the name of an attribute or adjunct for that of the thing meant	1
3569432169	apostrophe	figure of speech where the speaker talks to something non-human	2
3569436187	phlegmatic	having an unemotional and stolidly calm disposition	3
3569437142	spelentic	bad-tempered; spiteful	4
3569438912	sanguine	optimistic or positive especially in a difficult situation	5
3569442577	choleric	bad-tempered or irritable	6
3569443803	strumpet	promiscuous woman	7
3569445113	sycophant	person who acts obedient toward someone important to gain advantage	8
3569447324	unctuous	excessively or ingratiatingly flattering	9
3569449821	pragmatic	dealing with things sensibly and realistically	10
3569453703	auspicious	conducive to success; favorable	11
3569457954	perquisite	a thing regarded as a special right as a result of one's position	12
3569460845	stoic	a person who can endure pain or hardship without showing feelings or complaining	13
3569521880	hackneyed	lacking significance through overuse; trite	14
3569523325	jaded	tired, bored, lacking enthusiasm	15
3569525089	jejune	naive, simplistic, dry, uninteresting	16
3569540957	solipsist	theory that only the self exists	17
3569545419	trite	lacking originality; uninteresting	18
3569547330	hamarita	fatal flaw leading to a tragic downfall of a hero	19
3569553537	hubris	excessive pride and self confidence	20
3569563482	didactic	intended to teach with moral instruction as an ulterior motive	21
3569567692	itinerant	traveling from place to place	22
3569568541	mawkish	sentimental in a feeble or sickly way	23
3569578405	ameliorate	make something better	24
3569579669	superficial	appearing to be true until examined more closely	25
3569581583	archetype	typical example of a certain person or thing	26
3569585046	egregious	shockingly bad; lowest of the low	27
3569585943	fastidious	very attentive to detail; concerned with detail	28
3569588473	ephemeral	lasting for a very short time	29
3569592404	vacillate	alternate between different opinions or actions	30
3569594009	apocryphal	of doubtful authenticity; but widely circulated as true	31
3569602367	altruistic	selfless concern for the well-being of others; unselfish	32
3569604240	prolepsis	anticipation and answering of possible objections in rhetorical speech	33
3569610273	innate	inborn; natural	34
3569611261	dramatic irony	characters are oblivious of the situation but the audience is not	35
3569614434	cryptic	having a meaning that is mysterious or obscure	36
3569616787	banal	so lacking in originality as to be obvious an boring	37
3569619734	philanthropy	desire to promote the welfare of others expressed by generous donations of money and goods	38
3569623062	stentorian	loud and powerful voice	39
3569624325	taciturn	reserved or uncommunicative in speech; saying little	40
3569633780	epigram	short, satirical poem with a witty ending	41
3569636527	preclude	prevent from happening	42
3569638470	prodigal	wastefully extravagant	43
3569641310	languid	lack of physical exertion; slow, relaxed effort	44
3569650304	enervate	to weaken	45
3569650305	disparage	regard as being of little worth	46
3569661548	cupidity	greed for money and possessions	47
3569662318	apathy	lack of interest or caring	48
3569663721	augment	make greater by adding to it	49
3569664786	reticent	not revealing one's thoughts or feelings readily	50
3569665797	incoherent	expressed in an incomprehensible way	51
3569670207	importune	ask pressingly and persistently for	52
3569672882	extol	praise enthusiastically	53
3569673698	enigma	person or thing that is mysterious and puzzling	54
3569715271	repudiate	refuse to accept or associate with	55
3569717441	shibboleth	custom or belief distinguishing a group of people, especially one regarded as outmoded or no longer important	56
3569723030	relegate	consign or dismiss to an inferior rank or position	57
3569727537	dogmatic	inclined to lay down principles as incontrovertibly true	58
3569730771	adamant	refusing to be persuaded or change one's mind	59
3569733064	indolent	wanting to avoid activity or exertion; lazy	60
3569735296	nihilism	extreme skepticism maintaining that nothing in the world has a real existence	61
3569741031	ascetic	a person who practices severe self-discipline and abstention	62
3569743546	elucidate	make something clear; explain clearly	63
3569744834	complacent	showing smug or uncritical satisfaction with oneself and accomplishments	64
3569747649	germane	relevant to a subject under consideration	65
3569748967	mitigate	make less severe, serious, or painful	66
3569767197	immutable	unchanging over time or unable to be changed	67
3569806302	hedonist	a person who believes that the pursuit of pleasure is the most important thing in life	68
3569810078	incongruous	not in harmony or keeping with the aspects of something	69
3569886841	esoteric	intended for or likely to understood by a small # of people with specialized knowledge/interest	70
3569890342	ambivalent	having mixed feelings or contradictory ideas about something or someone	71
3569896435	atrophy	waste away; decrease due to lack of use	72
3569898788	engender	cause or give rise to a feeling, situation or condition	73
3569902647	congenial	pleasant or agreeable because it's suited to one's tast or inclination	74
3569908978	abate	cause to become smaller or less intense	75
3569911056	acrimonious	speech/attitude that is angry and bitter	76
3569913819	ambiguous	open to more than one interpretation; double meaning	77
3569916468	candid	truthful and straightforward	78
3569917896	discern	to perceive or recognize	79
3569919082	abstract	existing in thought or as an idea but not having a physical or concrete existence	80
3569922260	temper	serve as a neutral or counteracting part to something	81
3569927001	eccentric	unconventional and slightly strange	82
3569928198	servile	having or showing an excessive willingness to serve or please others	83
3569930772	virulent	of disease/poison; extremely severe or harmful in its effects	84
3569934680	aesthetic	concerned with beauty or appreciation of beauty	85
3569939048	guile	sly or cunning intelligence	86
3569939049	incessant	re: unpleasant; continuing without pause or interruption	87
3569942621	excoriate	censure or criticize severly	88
3569943839	euphony	quality of being pleasing to the ear, especially through a harmonious combination of words	89
3569948615	depravity	moral corruption; wickedness	90
3569951591	curmudgeon	a bad-tempered or surly person	91
3569953358	milquetoast	person who is timid or submissive	92
3569958277	picaresque	episodic style of fiction dealing with the adventures of a rough and dishonest but appealing hero	93
3569961649	bathos	effect of anticlimax created by an unintentional lapse in mood from the sublime to the trivial/ridiculous	94
3569968877	scansion	rhythm of a line of verse	95
3569971090	incredulous	unwilling or unable to believe something	96
3569974277	inexorable	impossible to stop or prevent. a person impossible to persuade by request or entreaty	97
3569977623	inveterate	having a particular habit that is long-established and unlikely to change	98
3570035786	offal	refuse or waste material	99
3570036913	motley	unorganized, diverse group	100
3570038423	poltroon	an utter coward	101
3570038424	exhort	strongly encourage or urge someone to do something	102
3570040637	gauche	lacking ease or grace; unsophisticated and socially awkward	103
3570044035	gratis	free of charge	104
3570046033	ignominious	deserving or causing public disgrace or shame	105
3570050012	dolorous	feeling or expressing great sorrow or distress	106
3570051207	undaunted	not intimidated or discouraged by difficulty, danger or disappointment	107
3570056479	dirge	a lament for the dead, especially one forming part of a funeral rite	108
3570060185	dissipated	person/way of life...overindulging in sensual pleasures	109
3570062648	carnal	relating to physical, especially sexual, needs and activities	110
3570064625	depraved	morally corrupt; wicked	111
3570065892	chasten	have a restraining or moderating effect upon	112
3570069827	denouement	final part of a play/movie in which the strands of the plot are drawn together and matters are explained	113
3570096405	libertine	a person who rejects accepted opinions in matter of religion; a freethinker. behaving without morals	114
3570101332	satyr	one of a class of lustful, drunken woodland gods	115
3570104697	urban	suave, courteous and refined in manner	116
3570106216	rustic	of or relating to the countryside; rural	117
3570117503	vestige	a trace of something that is disappearing or no longer exists	118
3570118921	expository	intended to explain or describe something	119
3570122891	lassitude	a state of physical or mental weariness; lack of energy	120
3570124388	prosody	the patterns of rhythm and sound used in poetry	121
3570130541	precis	a summary or abstract of a text or speech	122
3570132269	burlesque	absurd or comically exaggerated imitation of something; a parody	123
3570135089	chutzpah	shameless audacity; impudence	124
3570138516	mensch	a person of integrity and honor	125
3569589749	vacillate	be indecisive or waver between opinions/actions	126