AP Language and Composition Terms Flashcards

3413767114	allegory	the device of using character and/or story elements symbolically to represent an abstraction in addition to the literal meaning	0
3413775824	alliteration	the repetition of sounds, especially initial consonant sounds in two or more neighboring words	1
3413781730	allusion	a direct or indirect reference to something which is presumably commonly known, such as an event, book, myth, place, or work of art.	2
3413787265	ambiguity	the multiple meanings, either intentional or unintentional, of a word, phrase, sentence, or passage.	3
3413792135	analogy	a similarity or comparison between two different things or the relationship between them.	4
3413799056	antecedent	the word, phrase, or clause referred to by a pronoun	5
3413801644	antithesis	the opposition or contrast of ideas; the direct opposite	6
3413803962	aphorism	a terse statement of known authorship which expresses a general truth or a moral principle.	7
3413808022	apostrophe	a figure of speech that directly addresses an absent or imaginary person or a personified abstraction, such as liberty or love. It is an address to someone or something that cannot answer.	8
3413819771	asyndeton	omission of conjunctions between words, phrases, or clauses	9
3413822500	atmosphere	the emotional nod created by the entirety of a literary work established partly by the setting and partly by the author's choice or objects that are described	10
3413838372	caricature	a verbal description, the purpose of which is to exaggerate or distort, for comic effect, a person's distinctive physical features or other characteristics	11
3413852591	clause	a grammatical unit that contains both a subject and a verb.	12
3413854161	colloquial/colloquialism	the use of slang or informalities in speech or writing	13
3413859020	conceit	a fanciful expression, usually in the form of an extended metaphor or surprising analogy between seemingly dissimilar objects.	14
3431733933	concession	an argumentative strategy by which speaker (writer) acknowledges the validity of an opponents point	15
3431742543	connotation	the non-literal, associative meaning of a word; the implied, suggested meaning	16
3431748467	denotation	the strict, literal, dictionary definition of a word, devoid of any emotion, attitude, or color	17
3431751176	diction	related to style; the writers word choices, especially with regard to their correctness, clearness, or effectiveness	18
3431755410	didactic	words that have the primary aim of teaching or instructing, especially the teaching of moral or ethical principles	19
3431760932	ethos	a persuasive appeal based on the projected character of speaker or writer	20
3431765025	euphemism	more agreeable or less offensive substitute for a generally unpleasant word or concept	21
3431768604	extended metaphor	a metaphor developed at great length, occurring frequently in or throughout a work	22
3431773683	fallacy	an error in reasoning that renders an argument invalid	23
3431775915	figurative language	writing or speech that is not intended to carry literal meaning and is usually meant to be imaginative and vivid	24
3431783079	figure of speech	a device used to produce figurative language. many compare dissimilar things	25
3431787773	generic conventions	traditions for each genre, helps to define each genre	26
3431791235	genre	the major category into which a literary work fits	27
3431793122	homily	any serious talk, speech, or lecture involving morel or spiritual advice	28
3431797468	hyperbole	a figure of speech using deliberate exaggeration or overstatement.	29
3431797469	imagery	the sensory details or figurative language used to describe, arouse emotion, or represent abstractions.	30
3431802098	inference/infer	to draw a reasonable conclusion from the information presented	31
3462546369	invective	an emotionally violent, verbal denunciation or attack using strong, abusive language	32
3462549738	irony/ironic	the contrast between what is stated explicitly and what is really meant, or the difference between what appears to be and what is actually true.	33
3462559325	jargon	the specialized language or terminology of a particular group or field	34
3462562888	litotes	a form of understatement that involves making an affirmative point by denying it's opposite.	35
3462569173	loose sentence/non-periodic sentence	a type of sentence in which the main idea (independent clause) comes first, followed by dependent grammatical units such as phrases and clauses.	36
3462580446	metaphor	a figure of speech using implied comparison of seemingly unlike things or the substitution of one for the other, suggesting some similarity.	37
3462588089	metonymy	a figure of speech in which the name of one object is substituted for that of another closely associated with it.	38
3462594533	mood	the prevailing atmosphere or emotional aura of a work	39
3462597114	narrative	the telling of a story or an account of an event or series of events.	40
3462600648	onomatopoeia	a figure of speech in which natural sounds are imitated in the sounds of words.	41
3462606761	oxymoron	a figure of speech wherein the author groups apparently contradictory terms to suggest a paradox.	42
3462613633	paradox	a statement that appears to be self-contradictory or opposed to common sense but upon closer inspection contains some degree of truth or validity.	43
3462622893	parallelism	the grammatical or rhetorical framing of words, phrases, sentences, or paragraphs to give structural similarity.	44
3486930894	anaphora	a sub-type of parallelism, when the exact repetition of words or phrases at the beginning of successive lines or sentences	45
3486936577	parody	a work that closely imitates the style or content of another with the specific aim of comic effect and/or ridicule.	46
3486943686	pathos	means of persuasion that appeals to the audience's emotions	47
3486946928	pedantic	an adjective that describes words, phrases, or general tone that is overly scholarly, academic, or bookish	48
3486955244	periodic sentence	the opposite of loose sentence, a sentence that presents its central meaning in a main clause at the end.	49
3486964544	personification	a figure of speech in which the author presents or describes concepts animals, or inanimate objects by endowing them with human attributes or emotions.	50
3486971428	point of view	the perspective from which a story is told	51
3486980987	prose	one of the major divisions of genre, refers to fiction and nonfiction, including all its forms.	52
3486988302	refutation	the part of an argument wherein speaker(writer) anticipates and counters opposing viewpoints	53
3486996564	repetition	the duplication, either exact or approximate, of any element of language, such as a sound, word, phrase, clause, sentence, or grammatical pattern	54
3487009083	rhetoric	the principles of governing the art of writing effectively, eloquently, and persuasively	55
3487012300	rhetorical modes	the variety, the conventions, and the purposes of the major kinds of writing.	56
3506843193	sarcasm	involves bitter, caustic language that is meant to hurt or ridicule someone or something	57
3506844998	satire	a work that targets human vices and follies or social institutions and conventions for reform or ridicule.	58
3506850504	semantics	the branch of linguistics that studies the meaning of words, their historical and psychological development, their connotations, and their relation to one another	59
3506853214	style	an evaluation of the sum of the choices an author makes in blending diction, syntax, figurative language, and other literary devices	60
3506856383	subject complement	the word or clause that follows a linking verb and complements, or completes, the subject of the sentence by either renaming it or describing it.	61
3506861271	subordinate clause	contains both a subject and a verb, but unlike the independent clause, it cannot stand alone	62
3506864072	syllogism	a deductive system of formal logic that presents two premises that inevitably lead to a sound conclusion	63
3526463167	symbol/symbolism	generally, anything that represents itself and stands for something else.	64
3526473211	synecdoche	a figure of speech in which a part of something is used to represent the whole or, occasionally, the whole is used to represent a part.	65
3526478958	synesthesia	when one kind of sensory stimulus evokes the subjective experience of another.	66
3526484628	syntax	the way an author chooses to join words into phrases, clauses, and sentences.	67
3526489986	theme	the central idea or message of a work, the insight it offers into life.	68
3526492389	thesis	the statement is the sentence or group of sentences that directly expresses the author's opinion, purpose, meaning, or position	69
3526499020	tone	describes the author's attitude toward his material, the audience, or both.	70
3526503116	transition	a word of phrase that links different ideas	71
3526505909	understatement	the ironic minimalizing of fact, presents something as less significant than it is	72
3526509875	wit	intellectually amusing language that surprises and delights.	73
3526519706	zeugma	the use of a word to modify two or more words although its use may be grammatically or logically correct with only one.	74