English Techniques

Question 1

Allegory

Answer 1

Story with a double meaning: one primary (on the surface) and one secondary

Question 2

Allusion

Answer 2

a subtle or indirect reference to another thing, text, historical period, or religious belief

Question 3

Alliteration

Answer 3

the repetition of sounds at the start of a word in two or more words in close proximity

Question 4

Ambiguity

Answer 4

a statement or aspect of a text that lacks a clear or singular meaning

Question 5

Analogy

Answer 5

a comparison of two things for the purpose of explanation or clarification

Question 6

Anecdote

Answer 6

an interesting or unique personal story or account

Question 7

Anomaly

Answer 7

something which deviates from what is normal or expected

Question 8

Anthropomorphism

Answer 8

the act of attributing human qualities to a non-human figure

Question 9

Archetype

Answer 9

a recurring idea, character, or object

Question 10

Assonance

Answer 10

occurs when similar vowel sounds appear close together

Question 11

Bricolage

Answer 11

modern texts that are constructed from pre-existing material, often belonging to multiple sources and text types

Question 12

Cliché

Answer 12

an over-used, common expression

Question 13

Consonance

Answer 13

repetition of consonants throughout a sentence or phrase

Question 14

Contrast

Answer 14

the deliberate positioning of two or more objects, characters, or events who have different characteristics

Question 15

Dialect

Answer 15

a form of a language spoken by a particular group of people

Question 16

Diction

Answer 16

the selective choice of words and style of expression by an author

Question 17

Didactic

Answer 17

any text that instructs the reader or is obviously delivering a moral message

Question 18

Disjunct

Answer 18

a type of adverb that modifies a whole sentence

Question 19

Disjunction

Answer 19

a conjunction that dramatically interrupts the rhythm of the sentence to introduce a contrast

Question 20

Emotive Language

Answer 20

words that stir the readers’ emotions

Question 21

Enjambment

Answer 21

when a sentence or phrase runs over more than one line (or stanza); used to disrupt the flow of a poem or contrast distinct images or ideas

Question 22

Euphemism

Answer 22

mild expression used to replace a harsh one

Question 23

Foreshadowing

Answer 23

an allusion to something that will happen later in the narrative

Question 24

Flashback

Answer 24

a scene appearing in a test that occurs earlier than the main narrative

Question 25

Fragmented Sentences

Answer 25

incomplete sentences used to increase tension or urgency, or to reflect the way people speak to each other; conveys notions of destruction and decay

Question 26

Hyperbole

Answer 26

exaggeration

Question 27

Icons

Answer 27

a single person, object, or image that represents complex ideas and feelings

Question 28

Imagery

Answer 28

vivid pictures created by words; allows the reader to visualise character or setting clearly

Question 29

Imperative Voice or Mood

Answer 29

the forceful use of the verb at the start of the sentence or phrase

Question 30

Incantation

Answer 30

a poetic form that uses repetition, rhythm, and/or rhyme; conveys a sense of magic

Question 31

Intertextuality

Answer 31

when a text makes a reference to another text

Question 32

In Media Res

Answer 32

‘in the middle of things’; refers to narratives that begin in the middle of the action

Question 33

Irony

Answer 33

a gap between what is said and what is meant

Question 34

Juxtaposition

Answer 34

layering images or scenes to have a dramatic impact

Question 35

Sequential narrative

Answer 35

a narrative that takes place in chronological order

Question 36

Metaphor

Answer 36

a comparison of two objects where one becomes another; adds further layers of meaning about the object being compared

Question 37

Modality

Answer 37

the certainty which a speaker employs in their language

Question 38

Motif

Answer 38

a recurring symbol with a figurative meaning

Question 39

Onomatopoeia

Answer 39

a word that echoes the sound it represents

Question 40

Paradox

Answer 40

a statement that is self-contradictory or logically unsound; a juxtaposition of contradictory yet interrelated ideas which hold a hidden truth

Question 41

Parody

Answer 41

conscious imitation for a satiric purpose

Question 42

Pathetic Fallacy

Answer 42

the attribution of human emotions to objects of nature

Question 43

Personification

Answer 43

human characteristics given to an inanimate object

Question 44

Perspective

Answer 44

a particular way of looking at things in a text

Question 45

Pun

Answer 45

an exploitation of two different meanings of a homophonic word

Question 46

Reference

Answer 46

mentioning, usually unambiguously, a historical event, another author, or a set of ideas

Question 47

Repetition

Answer 47

the repeating of words or syntax for emphasis or persuasion

Question 48

Satire

Answer 48

a composition which ridicules in a scornful and numerous way

Question 49

Setting

Answer 49

the location of a story

Question 50

Sibilance

Answer 50

the repetition of soft consonant sounds; used to create a sinister or sensuous tone or mood

Question 51

Simile

Answer 51

a comparison between two objects between to

Question 52

Symbolism

Answer 52

when an object represents one or more complex ideas

Question 53

Syntax

Answer 53

the organisation of words and phrases in a sentence, as well as their structural relations

Question 54

Theme

Answer 54

the message or moral of a story

Question 55

Tone

Answer 55

the way the composer or character feels; converged by word choice

Question 56

Zoomorphism

Answer 56

the attribution of animal properties to non-animals