AP Language Terms
Terms
undefined, object
copy deck
- Simile
- A commonly used figure of speech that compares one thing with another using the words "like" or "as"
- Apostrophe
- A figure of speech in which an absent person or personified object is addressed by a speaker
- Hyperbole
- A figure of speech in which exaggeration is used to achieve emphasis
- Periodic Sentence
- Presents the main clause at the end of the sentence, for emphasis
- Atmosphere
- The emotional feeling -or mood- of a place, scene, or event
- Didactic
- Writing which has the purpose of teaching or instructing
- Theme
- The central idea
- Parody
- An effort to ridicule or make fun of a literary work or an author by writing a comic imitation of the work
- Oxymoron
- Two contradictory words in one expression
- Inductive Argument
- Creating a case by providing specific examples and drawing a conclusion based on the evidence they provide
- Understatement
- When an author assigns less significance to an event or thing than it deserves
- Point of View
- The particular perspective from which a story is told
- Rhetorical Question
- A question that is asked for the sake of argument
- Metonymy
- A figure of speech in which something is referred to by using the name of something that is associated with it
- Zeugma
- When a word is used with two adjacent words in the same construction, but only makes literal sense with one of them
- Pathos
- A sympathetic feeling of pity or compassion evoked by an artistic work
- Synonym
- A word that has the same, or nearly the same, meaning as another word
- Connotative
- The interpretive level of a word based on associated images rather than the literal meaning
- Rhetorical Devices
- The specific language tools that an author uses to carry out a rhetorical strategy (diction, imagery, or syntax)
- Antecedent
- Every pronoun refers back to a previous noun or pronoun
- Ellipses
- Indicated by a series of three periods; shows that words have been omitted
- Figurative Language
- All uses of language that imply an imaginative comparison
- Logos
- The use of reason as a controlling principle in an argument
- Ambiguity
- Uncertain or indefinite; subject to more than one interpretation
- Persona
- The character created by the voice and narration of the speaker of a text
- Alliteration
- The repetition of consonant sounds, usually at the beginning of words
- Euphemism
- A mild or pleasant sounding expression that substitutes for a harsh, indelicate, or simply less pleasant idea
- Rhetorical Strategy
- The way an author organizes words, sentences, and overall argument in order to achieve a particular purpose
- Allusion
- A reference, usually oblique or faint, to another thing, idea, or person
- Antithesis
- An opposition or contrast of ideas that is often expressed in balanced phrases or clauses
- Parallelism
- A literary technique that relies on the use of the same syntactical structures
- Juxtaposition
- When two contrasting things are placed next to each other for comparison
- Imagery
- A mental picture that is conjured by specific words and associations
- Diction
- An author's choice of words
- Irony
- When a situation produces and outcome that is the opposite of what is expected
- Elegy
- A work that expresses sorrow
- Appositive
- A word or phrase that follow a noun or pronoun for emphasis or clarity
- Analogy
- The correspondence or resemblance between two things that are essentially different
- Tension
- A feeling excitement and expectation the reader or audience feels because of the conflict, mood, or atmosphere of the work
- Syntax
- The way words are arranged in a sentence
- Colloquial Language
- Slang or common language that is informal
- Assonance
- A type of internal rhyming in which vowel souds are repeated
- Asyndeton
- When the conjunctions (such as "and" or "but") that would normally connect a string of words, phrases, or clauses are omitted from a sentence
- Selection of Detail
- The specific words, incidents, images, or events the author uses to create a scene or narrative
- Exposition
- Writing or speech that is organized to explain
- Deductive Argument
- The process of moving from a general rule to a specific example
- Contrast
- Oppositions
- Mood
- The prevailing or dominant feeling of a work, scene, or event
- Tone
- Attitude
- Personification
- A figure of speech in which ideas or objects are described as having human qualities or personalities
- Ad Hominem Argument
- Attacks the opposing speaker or another person rather than addressing the issues at hand
- Speaker
- The narrator of a story, poem, or drama
- Paradox
- A seeming contradiction that in fact reveals some truth
- Rhetoric
- The art and logic of a written or spoken argument to persuade, to analyze, or to expose
- Allegory
- Fictional work in which the characters represent ideas or concepts
- Pun
- A play on words
- Symbol
- Something that stands for something else
- Metaphor
- A figure of speech in which two unlike things are compared directly
- Attitude
- The feelings of a particular speaker or piece of writing toward a subject, person, or idea
- Ethos
- Refers to generally ethics, or values
- Syllogism
- A form of deductive reasoning in which pieces of evidence are used to create a new conclusion
- Satire
- To ridicule or mock ideas, persons, events, or doctrines
- Repetition
- The reiteration of a word or phrase for emphasis
- Foreshadowing
- A purposeful hint placed in a work of literature to suggest what may occur later in the narrative
- Onomatopoeia
- An effect created by words that have sounds that reinforce their meaning
- Anecdote
- A short story used to illustrate a point the author is making