AP Vocabulary 1-20

Question 1

Argumentation

Answer 1

Writing that attempts to prove the validity of a point or an idea by presenting “reasoned” arguments; Persuasive writing is a form of argumentation and is the focus of the AP Language and Composition Program

Question 2

Anecdotes

Answer 2

A short, simple narrative of an incident often for humor or for a point

Question 3

Allegory

Answer 3

An extended narrative of an incident often in prose or verse in which the writer intends a second meaning to be read beneath the surface of the story with the characters abstract qualities; The underlying meaning may be moral, religious, political.

Question 4

Annotation

Answer 4

Explanatory notes added to a text to explain, cite sources, or give bibliographic data. In AP Language you will need to demonstrate detailed annotation in most of your reading.

Question 5

Antithesis

Answer 5

The presentation of two contrasting images. The ideas are balanced by word, phrase, clause, or paragraph.

Question 6

Rhetoric

Answer 6

The art of effective or persuasive speaking or writing. especially the use of figures of speech and other composition techniques

Question 7

Colloquialism

Answer 7

A word or phrase, slang, used in everyday conversation and informal writing, but often inappropriate in formal. (Y’all, Ain’t, Can’t)

Question 8

Consonance

Answer 8

Repitition of identical consonant sounds within two or more words in close proximity

Question 9

Caricature

Answer 9

Descriptive writing that greatly exaggerates a specific feature of a persons appearance or facet of personality.

Question 10

Cotlerence

Answer 10

the quality of a piece of writing in which all the parts contribute to the development of the central idea or organizing principle

Question 11

Aphorism

Answer 11

Short, often witty, statement of a principle truth about life.

Question 12

Apostrophe

Answer 12

usually in poetry, but sometimes in prose: the device of calling out to an imaginary, dead, or absent person or abstract personification.

Question 13

Cacophomy

Answer 13

also referred to as dissonance, hard, awkward, or dissonant sounds used deliberately in poetry or prose, the opposite of Euphony

Question 14

Enumeration

Answer 14

Rhetorical device used for listing the details of a process or mentioning words or phrases step by step. In fact, it is a type of amplification or division in which a subject is further distributed into components or parts`

Question 15

Analogy

Answer 15

is a comparison in which an idea or a thing is compared to another thing that is quite different than it is. it aims at explaining that idea or thing by comparing it to something that is familiar.

Question 16

Parallelism

Answer 16

the use of components in a sentence that are grammatically the same; or similar in their construction or sound

Question 17

Allusion

Answer 17

a brief and indirect reference to a person, place, thing, or idea of historical, cultural, literary, or political significance. it does not describe in detail the person or thing which it refers. it is just a passing comment.

Question 18

Metonymy

Answer 18

a figure of speech that replaces the name of something else with which it is closely related.

Question 19

Anaphora

Answer 19

In writing or speech, the deliberate repitition of the first part of the sentence in order to achieve an artistic effect is known as anaphora. oldest literary device used in biblical psalms

Question 20

Epistrophe

Answer 20

derived from a greek word that means turning upon, which indicates the same word returns at the end of the sentence. stylistic device that can be defined as the repitition of words or phrases at the end of the sentence.

Question 21

Asyndeton

Answer 21

derived from a greek word which means unconnected. stylistic device used in literature and poetry to intentionally eliminate conjunctions between phrases and in the sentence, yet maintain grammatical accuracy.

Question 22

Polysyndeton

Answer 22

comes from a greek word meaning “bound together”. It makes use of coordinating conjunctions like “and” “or” “but” “nor”

Question 23

Provocative diction

Answer 23

purposeful choice of words serving or tending to provoke, excite, or stimulate a provocative question that will frame a rhetorical argument.

Question 24

classification

Answer 24

action or process of classifying something according to shared qualities or characteristics. This often is a strategy of argumentation or an argumentative response in an effort to provide the reader with structure to your argument.

Question 25

Understatement

Answer 25

Opposite of hyperbole or overstatement

Question 26

colorful diction

Answer 26

conscious choice of words as a writer, “colorful diction” is a very purposeful word choice that will serve to accentuate meaning and tone.

Question 27

Tone

Answer 27

attitude of a writer toward a subject or an audience. it is something important for the reader to sense to determine an argument. conveyed through word choice.

Question 28

Synecdoche

Answer 28

literary device in which a part of something represents the whole, or a whole to a part.

Question 29

Process analysis

Answer 29

step-by-step breakdown of the phases of a process, used to convey the details of each phase of thinking, an operation, etc. used to improve understanding.

Question 30

Counterargument

Answer 30

an argument or set of reasons put forward to oppose an idea or theory developed in another argument. it is mandatory for an argumentative writer to acknowledge.

Question 31

Claim

Answer 31

somebody gives an argument to support their position, it is called a claim

Question 32

Evidence

Answer 32

literary device that appears in different categories of essays and theses in the form of a paraphrase and quotations presented to persuade readers with powerful arguments in the texts or essay, in rhetoric, when a person makes a claim or presents an argument, they need to present evidence

Question 33

Warrant

Answer 33

glue that holds an argument together. It links the evidence to the claim. it says “evidence supports the claim because….” or is in similar form supporting why your evidence links your assertion

Question 34

Adage

Answer 34

short, pointed and memorable saying based one facts, and is considered a veritable truth by the majority of people. famous adages become popular due to their usage over a long period of time. expresses a general truth or fact about life.

Question 35

Pedantic

Answer 35

from french word, pedant, means “to teach or act as a pedagogue”. A pedantic is someone who is concerned with precision, formation, accuracy, minute details in order to make an arrogant and ostentatious show of learning.

Question 36

Flippant

Answer 36

lacking proper respect or seriousness. often associated with the impatience of youth. smart-ass

Question 37

Evocative

Answer 37

The use of language that “suggests” meanings other than the denotative. language that connects with emotions or feelings not associated with actual meaning.

Question 38

Syntactical Inversion

Answer 38

also called Anastrophe, in literary and rhetoric style the syntactical reversal of the normal order of the words and phrases in a sentence,as, in english, the placing of a adjective after the noun it modifies.

Question 39

Apposition

Answer 39

grammatical construction in which two elements, normally noun phrases, are placed side by side, with one element serving to identify the other in a different way.

Question 40

Didactic

Answer 40

frequently used for those literary texts which are overloaded with informative or realistic matter and are marked by the omission of graceful and pleasing details. therefore is a derogatory term referring to the forms of lit. that are ostentatiously dull and erudite.

Question 41

Conceit

Answer 41

figure of speech in which two vastly different objects are likened together with the help of similes or metaphors. conceit can have a surprising or shocking effect on the readers because they are novel comparisons unlike conventional comparisons

Question 42

Periodic sentence

Answer 42

has the main clause or predicate at the end. this is used for emphasis and can be persuasive by putting reasons for something at the beginning before the final point is made. can also create suspense or interest for the reader.

Question 43

Paradox

Answer 43

It is a statement that appears to be self contradictory or silly but may include a latent truth. also used to illustrate an opinion or statement contrary to accepted traditional ideas. a paradox is often used to make a reader think over an idea in an innovative way

Question 44

Satire

Answer 44

Technique employed by writers to expose and criticize foolishness and corruption of an individual or a society by using humor, irony, exaggeration or ridicule, it intends to improve humanity by criticizing its follies.

Question 45

Polemical

Answer 45

relating to an involving strongly critical, controversial, or disputatious writing or speech

Question 46

Ambiguity

Answer 46

or fallacy of ambiguity is a word, phrases, or statements which contains more than one meaning. Skilled writers use this with purpose and intent

Question 47

Archetype

Answer 47

also known as a universal symbol, may be a character, a theme, a symbol or even a setting. many literary critics are of the opinion that archetypes which have a common and recurring representation in a particular human culture or entire human race,shape or literary work.

Question 48

Function of archetype

Answer 48

use of archetypical characters and situations gives a literary word a universal acceptance, as readers identify the characters and situations in their social and cultural context

Question 49

Tragic Flaw

Answer 49

a literary device that can be defined as a trait in a character leading to his downfall and the character is often the hero of the literary piece. this could be the lack of self-knowledge, lack of judgement, or hubris.

Question 50

Assertion

Answer 50

when someone makes a statement investing his strong belief in it, as if it is true although it may not be, he is making an assertion. it is a stylistic approach or technique involving a strong declaration.

Question 51

Autobiography

Answer 51

type of biography, which tells a life story of its author, meaning it is a written record of the authors life, rather than being written by someone else, an autobiography is a person’s own pen.

Question 52

Memoir

Answer 52

record of memories. and particular events that have taken place in the authors life, telling of a story or an event from his life

Question 53

Cumulative sentence

Answer 53

known as a loose sentence that starts with an independent clause or main clause, which is simple and straight, provides main idea then adds subordinate elements or modifies`

Question 54

Blank verse

Answer 54

a literary device defined as un-rhyming verse written in iambic pentameter. In Poetry and Prose, has a consistent meter with 10 syllables in each line

Question 55

Bildungsroman

Answer 55

story of the growing up of a sensitive person who looks for answers to his questions through different experiences. Generally starts with a loss or tragedy that disturbs the main character emotionally

Question 56

Bildungsroman

Answer 56

Protagonist gains maturity gradually and with difficulty. Usually, the plot depicts a conflict between the Protagonist and the values of society. Finally he or she accepts these values and they are accepted by society

Question 57

Illusion

Answer 57

a false illustration of something, a deceptive impression, or a false belief. literally speaking it is something false and not factual

Question 58

Foil

Answer 58

a foil is a character that shows qualities that are in contrast with the qualities of another character with the objective to highlight the traits of another character.

Question 59

Intertextuality

Answer 59

a sophisticated literary device in writing. In fact, it is a textual reference within some text that reflects the text used as a reference. Instead of employing referential phrases from different literary works, Intertextuality draws upon the concept, rhetoric or ideology from other texts to be merged in the new text

Question 60

Litotes

Answer 60

Derived from a Greek word meaning simple, is a figure of speech which employs an understatement by using double negatives or, in other words, positive statement is expressed by negating its opposite expressions. “not too bad”

Question 61

Utopia

Answer 61

Literary term denotes an Illusionary place that projects the nation of a perfect society to the reader. Here, the “perfect society” refers to ideals conditions achieved within the material world as opposed to the expected idealism of afterlife in Christianity or other religions

Question 62

Sonnet

Answer 62

derived from Italian word “sonetto”. It means a small or little song lyric. In poetry, a sonnet has 14 lines written in iambic pentameter.

Question 63

Round Character

Answer 63

a character with a complex personality. similarly, a round character has many layers like an onion. writers define a round character fully physically and mentally.

Question 64

Vernacular

Answer 64

literary genre that uses daily used language in writing and speaking. different from written works, as they normally follow the formal variety of language. “vernacular” refers to writing or speaking of the public.

Question 65

Vernacular vs. Dialect

Answer 65

vernacular is the use of ordinary, everyday and plain language in speaking or writing, whereas dialect is related to a particular region, geographical area, particular social class, having distinguished pronunciation, vocabulary, or grammar