Help
Options
term
alliteration
click to flip
Didn't know it?
click below
click below
Knew it?
click below
click below
Don't know
term
allusion
Remaining cards (54)
Know
retry
shuffle
restart
0:00
Embed Code - If you would like this activity on your web page, copy the script below and paste it into your web page.
Normal Size Small Size show me how
Normal Size Small Size show me how
AP literary terms
vocabulary
| term | definition |
|---|---|
| alliteration | several consecutive/neighboring words with the same sound |
| allusion | refrence to mythological, literary, or historical person, place or clause for the purpose of contrast. ex: "he met his Waterloo" |
| antithesis | a direct juxtaposition of structurally parallel words, phrases or clauses for the purpose of contrast; ex: "sink or swim" |
| apostrophe | form of personification in which the absent or dead are spoken to as if present and the inanimate, as if animate |
| assonance | repetition of accented vowel sounds in a series of words |
| consonance | repetition of a constant sound within a series of words to produce harmonious effect |
| diction | word choice intended to convey a certain effect |
| epiphora | ending a series of lines, phrases, clauses, or sentences with the same word(s) |
| figures of speech | words/phrases that describe one thing in terms of something else; involve some sort of imaginative comparison between seemingly unlike things. Not taken literally; used to produce images in mind; most common: simile, metaphor, personification |
| flashback | a scene that interrupst the action of a work to show a previous event |
| foreshadowing | the use of hints or clues in a narrative to suggest future action |
| hyperbole | a deliberate exaggeration or overstatement for special effects |
| imagery | consists of words/phrases a writer uses to represent persons, objects, actions, feelings, and ideas descriptively by appealing senses |
| verbal irony | narrator says one thing but means the opposite "it's easy to quit smoking. i've done it many times" |
| situational irony | occurs when in a situation turns out differently than what you would normally expect - though after the twist is oddly appropriate; ex: a deep sea diver drowning in a bathtub |
| dramatic irony | occurs when a character says or does something that has different meanings from what he thinks it means, though audience understands full implications of speech/actions |
| metaphor | a figure of speech in which one thing is spoken of as though it were something else. |
| metonymy | a figure of speech in which the name of one object is substituted for that of another closely associated with it. ("the white house issued a statement today") |
| mood | atmosphere or predominant emotion in a literary work |
| narration | telling of story |
| onomatopoeia | use of words that mimic the sounds they describe |
| oxymoron | form of paradox that combines a pair of opposite terms into a single unusual expression |
| paradox | a statement that appears contradictory or absurd but which really expresses the truth |
| personification | kind of metaphor that gives inanimate objects human characteristics |
| plot | sequence of events/actions in literature |
| point of view | perspective from which narritive is told |
| protagonist | main character |
| antagonist | stands directly opposed to main character |
| pun | play on words that are identical or similar in sound byt have sharply diverse meanings.ex; " A pun is its own reword." |
| repetition | the deliberate use of any element of language more than once |
| rhyme | repetition of sounds in 2 or more words that appear clost to eacher in a poem |
| setting | time and place where it happens |
| simile | a figure of speech in which like or as is used to make a comparison between two basically unlike subjects |
| style | writers characteristic manner of employing language |
| suspense | quality of literature that makes reader uncertain/tense about outcome of events |
| syntax | arrangement of words and order of grammatical elements in a sentence |
| juxtaposition | a poetic and rhetorical device in which normally associated ideas, words, or phrases are placed next to each other |
| anachronism | Something out of its normal time |
| analogy | a comparison that explains or describes one subject by pointing out its similarities to another subject |
| anaphora | repetition of beginning clauses |
| anecdote | Brief story about an interesting, amusing, or strange event. It is told to entertain or make a point |
| aphorism | A general truth or observation about life. |
| colloquialism | an expression used in informal conversation but not accepted universally in formal speech or writing |
| dialect | the form of a language spoken by people in a particular region or group. Refers to pronunciation, vocabulary, and sentence structure. Also known as "local color." |
| epiphany | a sudden understanding or realization, which prior to this was not thought of or understood |
| epithet | an adjective or other descriptive phrase that is generally used to characterize a person, place, or thing |
| euphemism | a device where being indirect replaces directness to avoid unpleasantness |
| Idiom | a use of words, a grammatical construction peculiar to a given language or an expression that cannot be literally translated |
| pun | play on words based on different meanings of words that sound alike |
| rhetoric | the art of using words effectively in speech or writing |
| rhetorical shift | a change from one tone, attitude, ect. Look for key words like but, however, even though, although, yet, and so on. |
| synecdoche | a form of metaphor in which a part of something is used to stand for the whole thing. (IE stars and strips = flag) |
| tone | the writer or speaker's attitude toward his audience and/or subject. Tone can often be described by a single adjective. |
| understatement/litotes | saying less than is actually meant, generally in an ironic way. |
| voice | a language style adopted bt an author to create the effect of a particular speaker |
Created by:
heretolearn
Popular English Vocabulary sets