Language Levels & Literary Devices Flashcards
Lexis
Technical term for words, the vocabulary of a language
Open Word Class
The overarching lexical category of word classes where new
words can continually be added
Noun
A word that refers to a person, place, item, event
Count Noun
A noun that can be preceded by a number and counted (one book, three cows)
Mass Noun
A noun that can’t be counted and doesn’t have a plural (information, freedom)
Proper Noun
The lexis which refers to names of people, places or
organisations (Cadbury’s, Bournemouth)
Abstract Noun
The lexis which refers to states, feelings and concepts that do
not have a physical existence (freedom, love, hate)
Concrete Noun
The lexis which refers to things with a physical existence (toast)
Collective Noun
The lexis which refers to groups of things (a flock of sheep, a bunch of grapes)
Hypernym
An overarching (category) noun which encompasses many
other nouns (animal, vegetable)
Hyponym
A noun with a narrower meaning which is part of a hypernym
(category member) (cow, pig, pea, carrot)
Metonym
Using a word or phrase which is a part of something, to
describe the whole thing (Number 10=Prime Minister, Suits=Business People)
Verb
A word or phrase that describes an action, condition, or
experience
Verbal Verb
The lexis which is linked to the process of making sounds (shouted, whispered, hissed)
Material Verb
The lexis which refers to a physical action (running, jumping)
Mental Verb
The lexis which shows internal processes (thinking, wishing, believing)
Relational Verb
The lexis which describes states of being (be, appear, seem)
Dynamic Verb
The lexis which describes actions we can take, or things that
happen; they have a continuous form (Chris KICKS the ball;
Chris PAINTS)
Stative Verb
The lexis which describes states/conditions unlikely to change
(possession, feeling, perception, mental processes, identity);
typically, they do not have a continuous form (Chris HAS a car;
Chris KNOWS a lot;
Chris IS a doctor)
Adjective
A word which describes a noun (blue)
Pre-Modifying Adjective
Adjectives placed before the head noun (a DANGEROUS animal)
Post-Modifying Adjective
Adjectives placed after the head noun (the day was GOOD)
Demonstrative Adjective
Indicates exactly which noun the speaker means and is usually
used within spoken language as it requires context (this, those, these, that)
Possessive Adjective
A word which is placed before a noun to show ownership (my, your, his, her, its, our, your, their)
Adverb
A word which describes a verb
Temporal Adverb
A word or phrase which expresses when the verb happens (tomorrow, today, later, now)
Degree Adverb
A word which expresses the intensity of an adjective, adverb or
verb (too, enough, very, quite, extreme)
Duration Adverb
A word which expresses how long the verb happens for (forever, minutes)
Frequency adverb
A word which expresses how often the verb happens (sometimes, daily)
Manner Adverb
A word which expresses how the verb happens (badly, greedily)
Spatial Adverb
A word or phrase which expresses where the verb happens (here, under here, there, forward)
Positive
The basic, form of an adjective or adverb without any sense of
comparison (grumpy, fast)
Comparative
An adjective or an adverb which compares two things showing
greater or lesser degree (grumpier. faster)
Superlative
An adjective or an adverb which shows the greatest or least
degree (grumpiest, fastest)
Closed Word Class
The overarching lexical category of word classes where new
words cannot be added
Determiner/Article
A word that comes before a noun or noun phrase to clarify
if the noun is specific or general (the, an, a)
Definite Article
Indicates a specific noun (the)
Indefinite Article
Indicates a non-specific noun (an, a)
Interrogative Determiner
Used in the creation of both direct and indirect questions (who, what, when, where, why, which, whose, how)
Quantifier
A word to give information about the quantity of a noun (few, some)
Cardinal Number
A number which shows a quantity (one, two)
Ordinal Number
A number defining the position of something in a series (firstly, secondly)
Preposition
Words which show the location of a noun (under, on, at, from)
Co-ordinating Conjunction
A linking word which connects independent clauses or
phrases, giving equal importance to each section (and, but, or)
Subordinating Conjunction
A linking word which connects an independent clause with
a subordinate clause (because, although, since)
Pronoun
Words which replace nouns (he, she)
First Person Pronoun
A pronoun when the speaker is referring to themselves
either alone or as part of a group (I, you, me, us)
Second Person Pronoun
A pronoun when the speaker is referring to the
person/group of people they are talking to (you)
Third Person Pronoun
A pronoun when the speaker is referring to someone or
something other than the speaker or listener (he, she, it, they, him, her, them)
Personal Pronoun
A pronoun that refers to a particular person, group, or thing (I, you, he, she, it, we, they)
Possessive Pronoun
A pronoun which takes the place of a noun to show
ownership (mine, yours, his, hers)
Reflexive Pronoun
Pronouns that are used when the subject and the object of a sentence are the same (myself, yourself, herself, himself)
Demonstrative Pronoun
Replaces the noun and refers to something specific (these, those, this, that)
Relative Pronoun
A pronoun which introduces a relative clause (who, that, which)
Semantics
The study of how the meanings of words and expressions are
created and interpreted
Denotation
The literal meanings of words (summer-season)
Connotation
The associated meanings of words (summer-beach, sun, sea)
Antonym
Words which mean opposite things (valuable-worthless)
Synonym
Words which mean the same thing (valuable-precious)
Literal Language
Language which uses the actual meanings of words
Semantic Field
A group of words which have similar connotations, or which are part of the same theme (colour-red, hue, pink, shade, blue, tone)
Figurative Language
Language that is used in a non-literal way to create images
and form comparisons
Simile
A direct comparison through the use of ‘like’ or ‘as’ (he is as funny as a monkey)
Metaphor
A structure that presents one thing in terms of another (he is drowning in work)
Zoomorphism
Giving animal qualities, characteristics or behaviour to a
human (im preying on you tonight)
Anthropomorphism
Giving human qualities, characteristics or behaviour to an
animal or object (mickey mouse, pinocchio)
Collocation
Routinely placing words or phrases together, sounds normal to a native speaker (heavy rain, fast food, utter disaster)
Idiom
An expression where the meaning is not predictable from the
usual meanings of its elements (over the moon, im all ears)
Cliché
A saying or remark that has been used so much is not original
or interesting (useless as a chocolate lifeguard)
Euphemism
Using a more socially acceptable word or phrase (passed away)
Dysphemism
Using a blunt or direct word instead of a more polite or
indirect alternative (thats bullshit)
Hyperbole
Exaggerated statements or claims not meant to be taken
literally (my bag weighs a tonne)
Rhetorical Language
Language that is used to persuade
Logos
It appeals
to an audience’s sense of logic or reason (data, facts, stats)
Pathos
It appeals to an audience’s emotions (personal story, powerful image)
Ethos
It appeals
to the audience based on the speaker’s authority (referencing experience, morals, intentions, reasons)
Verbal Irony
Conveying a meaning which is the opposite of the literal
meaning (isnt it a lovely day-when its raining)
Anaphora
The deliberate repetition of the first part of a clause/sentence (we shall… we shall.. we shall)
Epistrophe
The deliberate repetition of the last part of a clause/sentene (… the people… the people… the people)
Symploce
The deliberate repetition of both the first and last part of a
clause/sentence (we will - again… we will - again… we will - again)
Epizeuxis
Repetition of a single word, with no other words in between (go, go, go)
Dialect
The variation in language which is associated with a specific
geographical region (in newcastle, a baby is a bairn)
Sociolect
Dialect of a particular social group (lmk, thirsty - attention seeking)
Idiolect
An individuals use of language
Formal Lexis
Language which is more impersonal, uses Standard English
rather than contractions
Jargon
Special words or expressions used by a profession or group that
are difficult for others to understand (legalese)
Subject-Specific Lexis
Words that are specific to a certain subject
Informal Lexis
Language which is more relaxed, familiar and conversational –
uses colloquial/non-standard English (good grub)
Expletive
The formal term for swear words
Taboo
Words and phrases which are generally considered
inappropriate in certain situations (swearing)
Slang
A constantly changing type of language which is very informal
and is more commonly seen in speech (bromance, throw shade)
Contraction
A word which is formed by shortening and combining two
words with the use of an apostrophe (could’ve, don’t)
Colloquialism
Informal language which often includes slang (ain’t, y’all)
Register
A variety of language that is associated with a particular situation of use
Situation Of Use
A specific place, time and context in which communication
takes place
Frozen Register
Language that never changes (wedding vows)
Formal Register
Standard english (speeches, letters)
Professional Register
Less formal Standard English which doesn’t always completely
conform to Standard English rules (employee to employer)
Informal Register
Language between friends
Personal Register
Language between lovers or other close family and friends (pet names, inside jokes)
Vulgar Slang Register
Informal language that may cause offense
Academic Register
Language which is more academic (school lessons)
Informative Register
Language which conveys meanings/information (brochures)
Transactional Register
Language which supports transactional interactions in which
one person provides a service or good (buying/selling)
Fixed Expression
A well-used group of words that becomes accepted
and used as one long structure (on the other hand, utter disaster)
Semantic Change
The evolution of word usage – either through a shift in meaning
or the creation of new words
Etymology
The study of the origin of words and the way in which their
meanings have changed
Archaic Language
Old fashioned language which isn’t typically used any more (foorsooth)
Amelioration
A process where a word or phrase develops more positive
connotations (nice used to mean foolish)
Pejoration
A process where a word or phrase develops more negative
connotations (cunning used to mean knowledgeable)
Broadening
A type of semantic change where the meaning of a word
becomes broader or more inclusive (cookie)
Narrowing
A type of semantic change where the meaning of a word
becomes narrower or less inclusive (meat used to mean food in general)
Semantic Reclamation
Where a word which has previously carried negative
connotations is reclaimed by the community it was used against (gay, n-word)
Neologism
New words that enter a language (salvaging, doublethink)
Portmanteau
Where two or more words are joined together but parts are
omitted (pocket + monsters = pokemon)
Acronym
An abbreviation consisting of initial letters which then create a
new word (scuba - self-contained
underwater breathing
apparatus)
Initialism
An abbreviation consisting of initial letters pronounced
separately (fbi)
Eponym
A person after whom a discovery, invention, place, book, etc., is
named (fahrenheit - daniel g fahrenheit)
Compound Word
A word which is caused by two or more full words being joined
together (rainbow)
Truncation
Shortening a polysyllabic word by deleting one or more
syllables (ads, maths, app, bio, chem, intel)
Affixation
When an affix is added to create a new word
Back-Formation
When an affix is removed to create a new word (enthusiast (n) becomes to
enthuse (v))
Functional Shift
Where word classes of existing words are altered (empty (adj)
becomes to empty
(v))
Loan Word
A word adopted from a foreign language (cafe, croissant)
Recast Neologism
Where an existing word gains a completely new meaning (cookie)
Grammar
The whole system and structure of a language
Morphology
The study of how words are formed in language
Morpheme
The smallest unit of language – this could be a root word
or a collection of letters (apple, affix un)
Root Morpheme
A morpheme that can stand alone as a word (rose)
Bound Morpheme
A morpheme that cannot stand alone as a word, but
combine with a root word to form a new word (un)
Affix
A morpheme which could either come before, after or
within a root word (bi, trans, tion, ed)
Prefix
A morpheme that comes before a root word to modify its
meaning (un, anti)
Suffix
A morpheme that comes after a root word to modify its
meaning (ment, ly)
Infix
A word element which is inserted within the base form of
a word to create a new word or intensify meaning (fan - bloody - tastic)
Inflectional Function
A type of suffix which shows either plurality or verb tense (s, ed)
Derivational Function
A type of affix which changes the meaning of the root
word (tion, ment)
Word
A single distinct meaningful element of language
Participle
A word formed from a verb and used as an adjective, noun, or
to make compound verb forms (working, skiing, yelling)
Gerund
A present participle which acts like a noun (SKIING is a sport)
Participle Adjective
A participle which acts like an adjective (the BORED man, the BORING man)
Imperative
A verb which gives a command (listen)
Infinitive
The base form of a verb before it has been conjugated –
preceded by to… (to sing, to scream)
Split infinitive
Where another word is placed between the to and verb of an
infinitive (to freely think)
Transitive verb
A verb which is acting upon a direct object (they laughed at the snow)
Intransitive verb
A verb which is not acting upon a direct object (the girls laughed)
Phrasal Verb
A compound verb which combines two/three words to create
a single unit (give up, put up with)
Reflexive verb
A form of transitive verb whose subject and object refer to
the same person or thing: the object is a reflexive pronoun (i taught myself)
Reflexive Pronoun
Pronouns that are used when the subject and the object of a sentence are the same (myself, himself)
Conjugation
The variation of the form of a verb by which the tense,
number, and person are identified
Regular Verb
A verb which follows typical patterns of inflection (to walk)
Irregular Verb
A verb which doesn’t follow typical patterns of inflection (to be, to go)
Verb Tense
A verb which refers to the time of past, present and future
Past Tense
A tense expressing an action that has already happened (i loved my school)
Present Tense
A tense expressing an action that is currently happening (he lives in town)
Future Tense
A tense expressing an action that has not yet happened or a
state that does not yet exist (they will go to the cinema)
Phrase
A unit of language which conveys meaning (the fast, red squirrel)
Head Word
The key word that determines the phrase type – noun
phrase, adjectival phrase (a tiny WIZARD)
Noun Phrase
A noun with adjectives and/or determiner (the vibrant sunset)
Verb Phrase
A verb with an auxiliary or modal verb (i was singing, i was laughing)
Adverbial
A phrase which adds further information to the verb,
typically specifying place or time (the rabbit hopped AS FAST AS IT COULD)
Fronted Adverbial
An adverbial phrase which has been moved to the front
of the sentence and is usually separated from the main
clause with a comma (ALL NIGHT LONG, we danced)
Prepositional Phrase
A type of adverbial which specifies place, having a
preposition as the head word (the broom IN THE CORNER)
Main Verb
A verb which contains the meaning and in a verb phrase
is preceded by an auxiliary verb (she has EATEN, she might CRY)
Auxiliary Verb
A verb which precedes the main verb to form part of a
verb phrase – they can be categorised as primary and
modal (have, might)
Primary Auxiliary Verb
A verb which precedes the main verb to change the
grammar (have, be, do)
Modal Auxiliary Verb
A verb which shows degrees of certainty, desirability
obligation – they cannot occur alone (might, could, should)
Deontic Modality
Expressions that highlight a sense of obligation or
necessity (must, will)
Epistemic Modality
Expressions that highlight degrees of possibility (can, could)
Boulomaic Modality
Expressions that highlight wishes and desires (want, wish)
Participle
A word formed from a verb and used as an adjective,
noun, or to make compound verb forms (WORKING woman, SKIING, he is YELLING)
Past Participle
A verb inflection which refers to an action that was
started and completed entirely in the past and is usually seen with an auxiliary verb or used as an adjective (worked, wept, flew)
Syntax
The word order and grammatical structure of sentences
Present Participle
A verb inflection which refers to a continuous action and is usually seen with an auxiliary verb or used as an
adjective (waving, screaming)
Double Negative
Two negatives placed in the same sentence, thereby turning it into a positive (it cant possibly not rain = it will rain)
Tautology
Producing redundancy through saying the same thing
twice in different words (sams autobiography of his own life)
Clause
A grammatical unit which can either stand alone (main
clause) or support a section of the sentence (subordinate
clause) but it must contain a verb (she washed her hair (svo))
Main Clause
A clause which is complete by itself and as such, can form
an independent sentence (i walk the dog)
Subordinate Clause
A clause which is not complete by itself and as such,
cannot form an independent sentence (because the pig rolled)
Conditional Clause
A specific type of subordinate clause which express an
imagined situation or condition and the possible result of
that situation (if it rains)
Relative Clause
A specific type of subordinate clause which adds more
information to the noun (my gran, WHO IS 82, still lives in newcastle)
Co-ordination
Joining aspects of a sentence together using coordinating conjunctions (and, or)
Subordination
Joining aspects of a sentence together using
subordinating conjunctions (because)
Sentence
A unit of meaning which is formed from a clause / several
clauses
Simple Sentence
One complete independent clause (i burnt dinner)
Compound Sentence
Two or more independent clauses which are joined
together with a co-ordinating conjunction (i made tea and fell asleep)
Complex Sentence
An independent clause and a dependent / subordinate clause which are usually joined with either a
subordinating conjunction or a comma (whilst i was sleeping, i walked around my house)
Compound-Complex Sentence
At least two independent clauses and a subordinate
clause (when it was snowing, phillip read and drank hot chocolate)
Orthographic Sentence
A sentence without a verb (oh my god)
Declarative
A sentence which function makes a statement (trixie waited in anticipation)
Exclamative
A sentence which has an expressive function and ends
with an exclamation mark (this is amazing)
Imperative
A sentence function which is a command (stand up)
Interrogative
A sentence which asks a question (what day is it?)
Conditional
A main clause and a conditional clause, showing possibility (if it rains, i will cry)
Subject
The noun, pronoun or noun phrase that precedes and
governs the main verb (SHIRLEY danced)
Object
A noun, noun phrase, or a pronoun that is affected by the
action of a verb (the cat sat on the MAT)
Active Voice
Placing the subject before the verb (SV / SVO) (the pupils looked in confusion at mel)
Passive Voice
Placing the object and verb before the subject – it is
usually indicated by ‘by+subject’, however the subject is
sometimes omitted (OV / OVS) (mel was looked at in confusion by the pupils)
Vocative
A word or phrase used to address a reader or listener
directly, usually in the form of a personal name, title, or
term of endearment (have a lovely day SALLY)
Antecedent
The noun or noun phrase which a pronoun refers to (if a MAN has a TALENT and cant use IT hes FAILED)
Fronting/Front Focused
Placing elements of a clause before they would typically
appear to add emphasis (A VERY POSH CAMERA it was)
Suspension/End Focused
Delaying the most important information within a
sentence until the end (all you need is love)
Fronted Adverbial
An adverbial phrase which has been moved to the front
of the sentence and is usually separated from the main
clause with a comma (ALL NIGHT LONG we danced)
Syntactical Parallelism
When parts of the sentence are grammatically the same,
or are similar in construction - it can be a word, a phrase,
or an entire sentence (it was the best of times, it was the worst of times)
Normal Syntax
The typical word order and grammatical structure of
sentences (jane ate the cake)
Inverted Syntax
A change to the typical word order and grammatical
structure of sentences (a cake jane ate)
Phonology
The study of the sound systems of languages
Phonetics
The study of how speech sounds are made and received
Phoneme
The smallest unit of sound (k)
Consonant
One of the two main classes of sound where the breath is
at least partly obstructed (b, c, d)
Plosive
A harsh consonant sound produced by completely
stopping the flow of air (p, b, t, d, k, g)
Vowel
One of the two main classes of sound where the breath is
unobstructed (a, e, i, o ,u)
Monophthong
A sound formed by one vowel sound in a single syllable (pat)
Diphthong
A sound formed by the combination of two vowels in a
single syllable (b-oy)
IPA
International Phonetic Alphabet : a system of transcribing
the sound of words (d̠ʒ - j)
Schwa
A generic vowel sound (ə) that is usually pronounced in unstressed syllables (supply - səplaɪ)
Digraph
Two letters representing a single sound (gh (trough) ea (bread))
Trigraph
Three letters representing a single sound (tch (watch) oeu (manoruvre))
Articulator
Any of the vocal organs above the larynx (tongues, lips, teeth, palate)
Alveolar Ridge
A hard ridge behind the teeth
Hard Palate
A hard section at the roof of the mouth, just behind the
alveolar ridge
Soft Palate
A fleshy section at the back of the roof of the mouth
Epiglottis
Cartilage at the root of the tongue which covers the
windpipe during swallowing
Larynx
The organ containing the vocal cords
Glottis
Part of the larynx which contains the vocal cords
Vocal Cord/Fold
Muscles which moderate the airflow and vibrate to
change intensity and pitch
Alveolar
Sounds produced when the tongue hits the alveolar ridge (t, d, b, l, s, z)
Bilabial
Sound produced using both lips (b, p, m)
Dental
Sounds produced when the tongue is placed at the back
of the upper teeth (Th (θ, ð))
Fricative
A group of consonant sounds produced by forcing air
through a restricted passage (th, f, v, s, z, j, sh)
Glottal Stop
A sound produced when the vocal cords interrupt the
flow of air, often to replace a ‘t’ sound (water become wa - uh)
Labial
Sounds which are formed at the lips, comprising of both
bilabials and labio-dentals (p, m, f, v)
Labia-Dental
Sounds which are formed when the lower lip makes
contact with the upper teeth (f, v)
Nasal
Sounds which are produced through the nasal cavity (m, n, ng)
Palatal
Sounds produced when the tongue hits the hard palate (y)
Velar
Sounds produced when the tongue hits the soft palate (k, g, ng)
Paralinguistic Features
Non-lexical aspects of speech which include vocal and physical expression (whispering, laughing, breathlessness)
Prosodics
Non-verbal aspects of speech like pace, stress, pitch, intonation and volume
Pace
The speed
Stress
The prominence of a syllable in a word
Pitch
The highness/lowness
Intonation
The pitch of a speaker’s voice and how it changes
Volume
The loudness/quietness
Voiced Pause
A pause in a speech with sound
Voiceless Paused
A pause in a speech without sound
Alliteration
The repetition of the same sound at the beginning of
words (lovely lucy lives in london)
Assonance
Where the vowel sounds in words are similar or the same (low smokey holes)
Consonance
Repetition of consonant sounds (mike likes his new bike)
Sibilance
Repetition of ‘s’ or ‘sh’ sounds (salty salmon swims slowly)
Onomatopoeia
A word which sounds like the noise it’s describing (buzz)
Pronunciation
The manner in which sounds are articulated
Accent
The variation in the pronunciation of words (wiganese)
Received Pronunciation
An accent traditionally associated with high social status which is considered to be the standard accent and as
such, is used for IPA translation
Th-Fronting
When a speaker replaces th sounds with f or v (think - vink)
Rhythm
The patterns of stressed and unstressed syllables which are counted in feet
Syllable
The individual units of pronunciation which make up words (le - vel)
Monosyllabic
A word (or series of words) consisting of one syllable (she sat on the mat)
Polysyllabic
A word consisting of more than one syllable (tenn - is)
Letter-Figure Homophone
Where numbers are substituted for parts of words to create a word which sounds the same as its original (l8r, h8, m8)
Homograph
Words with the same spelling and the same/different
sound but a different meaning (tear/tear, lie/lie)
Heterophone
Words with the same spelling but a different sound and meaning (lead/lead, row/row)
Homophone
Words with the same sound but a different spelling and meaning (their/theyre/there)
Homonym
Words with the same sound and the same/ different spelling but a different meaning (pair/pear, row/row)
Graphology
Study of the visual aspects of a text
Layout
The way in which a text is physically structured
Portrait Orientation
When the rectangular page is placed vertically
Landscape Orientation
When the rectangular page is placed horizontally
Margin
The edge/boarder around the text
Indent
Start (a line of text) or position (a block of text) further from
the margin than the main part of the text
Justified
The arrangement of lines in a text so there are even margins
Centre Alignment
The arrangement of lines in a text so there are even margins
Left Alignment
The arrangement of lines in a text so that each one starts at
the left margin/gutter
Right Alignment
The arrangement of lines in a text so that each one starts at
the right margin/gutter
Column
Vertical blocks which are separated by gutters
Gutters
The gap between columns
Negative Space
The space within, between, and around objects, including the
margin
Iconic Image
Signs or images which are a direct representation (stop sign means stop)
Symbolic Image
Signs or images where meaning is drawn from a shared degree of knowledge
Multimodal Text
Texts that rely on the interplay of different modes
Orthographical Features
The features of the writing system such as spelling, capitalisation and punctuation
Capitalisation
Writing using capital letters, either for whole words or for the
beginning of word
Majuscule Letters
Large (capitalised) letters which are the height of an ascender
Miniscule Letters
Smaller (lower case) letters which are measured by the x-height
Typographical Features
The features of fonts used in texts such as font type, size and
colour
Font
The style, size, colour of the letters
Serif
A small stroke at the top/bottom of the letter
Serif Font
A font that uses serifs
Sans-Serif Font
A font which does not use serifs
Baseline
The line upon which most letters “sit” and below which
descenders extend
Cap Height
The height of a capital letter above the baseline for a particular typeface (H, E)
X-Height
The height of lower case letters – this is measured in relation
to the x
Descender
A part of a letter which descends below the foot of the letter x (g, y)
Ascender
A part of a letter which extends above the height of the letter
x (f, l)
Kern
The spacing between characters
Counter
The area of a letter that is entirely or partially enclosed by a
letter form or a symbol
Bold
Characters that are darker and heavier
Italics
Characters slopping to the right
Superscript
A small letter, numerical or symbol set beside/above the top of a fully sized character
Subscript
A small letter, numerical or symbol set beside/below the foot
of a fully sized character
Strikethrough
Characters with a horizontal line through their centre
Cursive Lettering
Writing where the letters
are joined in a series of round, flowing strokes
Printed Lettering
Writing where the letters are not joined together
Block Lettering
Writing using only capital letters
Graphetic Reinforcement
Making graphic design choices, particularly when choosing
typeface, which do support the meaning of the words
Graphetic Contradiction
Making graphic design choices, particularly when choosing
typeface, which do not support the meaning of the words
Pragmatics
Exploring how contextual factors such as background
knowledge influence meaning
Face
The public self image that every person projects in
communication
Lose Face
To publicly suffer a diminished self-image (embarrassment, humiliation)
Save Face
To act in a way which preserve your reputation or honour (apologise)
Positive Face Need
The individual desire of a person that their personality is
appreciated and liked by others (appreciation of personal achievements)
Negative Face Need
The basic personal rights of an individual and their desire
not to be imposed upon, intruded, or otherwise put upon (freedom of speech)
Face Threatening Act
An act which challenges the face of an interlocutor either verbally or paralinguistically
Indirect Face Threatening Act
An ambiguous speech act which is not necessarily directed at anyone specific - the receiver may “catch the
drift” but the speaker can also deny a meaning if they wish (i wonder how far a persons lips can stretch yet remain closed when eating)
Face Threatening Act With No Politeness
Does nothing to reduce the threat to the hearer’s face and is therefore used in close relationships or when
information needs to be shared quickly (close your mouth when you eat)
Face Threatening Act With Positive Politeness
Makes the hearer feel a sense of closeness and belonging by highlighting friendliness (you have such beautiful teeth. i just wish i didnt see them when you eat)
Face Threatening Act With Negative Politeness
Making the hearer not feel threatened by showing
deference or apologising (i know you’re very hungry and that steak
is a bit tough, but i would appreciate it if you would chew with your mouth closed)
Politeness Strategies
Speech acts that express concern for others and minimise
threats to self-esteem
Positive Politeness
A way to make a request without giving offence by highlighting friendliness (you have such beautiful teeth. i just wish i didnt see them
when you eat)
Honorific
Titles of address implying or expressing respect (miss, mrs)
Tag Question
A short question added at the end of a sentence, often inviting agreement with the speaker (its easy, isnt it)
Compliment
A polite expression of praise or admiration (you should be proud of yourself)
Common Ground
Shared opinions or interest
Negative Politeness
A way to make a request without giving offence by showing deference (i know you’re very hungry and that steak is a bit tough, but i would appreciate it if you would chew with your mouth closed)
Hedge
A word or phrase that makes a statement less forceful or
assertive (is this PERHAPS your first time driving a car)
Schema
The bundle of knowledge about a concept, person or event
Embodied Knowledge
Knowledge that is associated with memories of physically experiencing something (sights and smells of a city)
Allusion
A figure of speech when a text or speaker refers to a saying, idea, event, etc. outside the text or conversation (adam and eve)
Cultural Allusion
A figure of speech that references a place, event or literary work, that is recognised by most people within a
culture (american not understanding british humour)
Idiom
An expression where the meaning is not predictable from the usual meanings of its constituent elements (over the moon)
Inference
Using assumed knowledge in order to determine meaning
Irony
The use of words to convey a meaning that is the opposite of its literal meaning (what nice weather we are having)
Presupposition
Any information which is taken for granted within discourse (jane no longer writes fiction = jane once wrote fiction)
Speech Act
An utterance considered as an action that does something (i now pronounce you husband and wife)
Locution
The literal meaning (a child asks to play in the rain, the mum says its raining - its raining)
Illocution
The implied meaning that the text producer wants you to understand (a child asks to play in the rain, the mum says its raining - no you cant)
Perlocution
The perceived meaning that the text receiver understands (a child asks to play in the rain, the mum says its raining - i cant play outside)
Felicity Conditions
The conditions that a speech act must meet if it appropriate or successful (you must be a registrar
to successfully say ‘I now
pronounce you husband
and wife’)
Sincerity Conditions
A type of felicity condition that requires speakers to be sincere about what they’re saying (you must actually mean ‘im sorry’)
Indirect Speech Act
Where there is a discrepancy between the literal meaning and the intended meaning (can you pass the salt – this is a request to pass
salt, not to find out if they are capable)
Conversational Maxim
Grice proposed 4 maxims (rules) for how conversations are structured
Maxim Of Manner
Be clear and avoid ambiguity/obscurity
Maxim Of Quality
Speak the truth
Maxim Of Quantity
Do not say too little or too much
Maxim Of Relevance
Be relevant and say things which are pertinent to the topic of conversation
Flouting A Maxim
Not following the conversational maxims
Co-operative Principle
Grice proposed that those involved in communication assume that both parties seek to co-operate with one
another to establish agreed meaning
Conversational Implicature
Grice stated this is where the speaker flouts one of the
conversational maxims
Deixis/Deictic Expression
A word or phrase within a text or conversation that can’t be understood unless you know the context
Person Deixis
indicate participants in a conversation, primarily through personal pronouns (you, he, she, we)
Spatial Deixis
Indicate location relative to the speaker or listener.
(here, there, this, that)
Temporal Deixis
Expressions that locate an event in time relative to the moment of speaking (now, verb tenses, today)
Discourse
Exploring whole text (written, spoken and multimodal)
construction at a level beyond lexis/grammar
Transient Text
A text that only lasts for a short time and as such is only temporary (sms)
Transcript
A written record of conversation that was originally spoken
CMC
Computer mediated conversation (email, online forum, sms)
Synchronous CMC
CMCs that happen at
the same time, without a time delay (im, chatrooms)
Asynchronous CMC
CMCs that have a time delay (email, blog, online forum)
Split Discourse
When participants are separated in time and/or space (email, phone call, postcard, advert)
Interdiscursivity
The use of discourses from one field as part of another (using science discourse in selling makeup)
Discourse Marker
Words, phrases and clauses which organise texts (however, as i was saying)
Cohesion
The way sentences or utterances join together to form a whole text
Addition
Showing similar ideas linking (furthermore, additionally)
Consequence
Showing cause and effect (as a result)
Comparison
Showing similarities and differences (likewise, however)
Temporal
Showing time (later)
Enumeration
Showing ordered ideas, often using ordinal numbers (firstly, next)
Summary
Showing a conclusion (to conclude)
Substitution
Replacing one set of lexical items for another (replacing nouns with pronouns)
Endophora
Making reference to something within the text (i saw SALLY yesterday, SHE was lying on the beach)
Anaphora
Referencing back to an already stated lexical item (MILLY polished HER crown)
Anaphor
A word or phrase that refers back to an earlier word or phrase (milly polished HER crown)
Cataphora
Referencing forwards to an as yet undisclosed lexical item (HE who should not be named is VOLDERMORT)
Cataphor
A word or phrase that refers forward to a later word or
phrase (HE who should not be named is voldermort)
Antecedent
The noun or noun phrase which a pronoun refers to (if a MAN has a talent and cant use it, HES failed)
Exophora
Making reference to something outside the text (look at that)
Interlocutor
A person who is engaged in a dialogue or conversation
(either spoken or written)
Conversational Floor
The ‘space’ containing a conversation – participants
can share the floor, or hold the floor
Non-Fluency Feature
Anything that removes fluency in spoken language
Voiced Pause
A pause in speech with sound (umm, ermm, err)
Unvoiced Pause
A pause in speech without sound
False Start
When a speaker begins to speak, pauses, then recommences (he.. er she was late)
Filler
A type of voiced pause where the speaker hesitates by using an apparently meaningless word or phrase so they have thinking time (right, okay)
Hesitation Particle
A form of filled pause which is common in everyday
speech and often precedes a dispreferred response (hmmm, ermm, mmmm)
Utterance
The act of making a vocal sound
Supportive Minimal Vocalisation
Where a second speaker utters minimal responses to support what is being said (yeah, mhm)
Constraints
Something that limits or restricts someone’s behaviour
or actions (social situation)
Fixed Expression
A conventional and routine expression which is used in
colloquial discourse (as a matter of fact, at the end of the day)
Situational Characteristics
The situation or context in which a discourse event takes place which motivates the speaker or writer to
adopt a particular register
Adjacency Pair
Dialogue which follows a set pattern of question/answer (how are you, good thanks)
Insertion Sequence
A sequence of turns that intervenes between the first and second parts of an adjacency pair (id like some paint, how many tubes, UH WHATS THE PRICE, THREE POUND A TUBE, ill have five then)
Preferred Response
A response to a speech act which is culturally expected (want to join us for dinner tomorrow, id love to)
Dispreffered Response
A response to a speech act which is not expected (would you like to come for dinner tomorrow, uhmm well.. i told cathy i would join her for dinner tomorrow instead)
Exchange Structure
The routine structure for short interactions, usually initiation, response and follow-up (whats the time, 6:30, thanks)
Turn Taking
The way in which participants take turns in interactions
Transition Relevance Place
The time in a conversation at which the turn of talk could legitimately pass from one speaker to another
Overlap
When speech acts overlap and one speaker rapidly ceases to speak
Simultaneous Speech
Where speakers speak at the same time
Topic Change
A natural phenomenon in conversations where
speakers move topics to aid the flow of the discourse
Skip-Connector
Returning back to previous topics of conversation (anyway, coming back)
Closed Question
A question which needs only a yes or no answer (do you like peas)
Open Question
A question which demands more information than a simple yes or no - it passes the turn to the other person fully and expects them to contribute to the exchange (whats your favourite animal)
Adjunct
Non-essential elements of clauses
that can be omitted without changing the meaning (ill see you IN THE MORNING)
Disjunct
An adverb that expresses a writer or speaker’s attitude towards the material that follows (SADLY not one of them lived)
Repair
The correction of a misunderstanding or error made
within a conversation (i mean…)
Phatic Talk
Language that is devoid of content but that supports
social relationships (hello)
Unfinished Sentence
A feature of spoken discourse where sentences are left
unfinished either because of pre-existing knowledge or
paralinguistic aspects of the interaction (so i didnt…)
Interrupted Construction
Sentences that are dropped half-way through in favour of another (so it think that its… what im trying to say is that i dont hate them)
Elision
When sounds or syllables are left out of speech to make pronunciation easier (dya, bacon n eggs)
Ellipsis
When words are left out of a sentence without affecting the meaning ([are] you ready yet, [im] ready now)
Genre
The categorisation of a text based upon expected shared conventions
Discourse Event
another term for a text
Mode
The medium of communication (writing, speech)
Multi-Modal Text
when texts mix features of spoken and written modes
Intertextuality
when a text makes reference to another existing text for effect
Text Receiver/Audience
the reader/listener of the text
Implied Text Receiver/Audience
the intended receiver of a text
Actual Text Receiver/Audience
the actual receiver of a text
Audience Positioning
how the audience is supposed to react to the subject of the
text
Discourse Community
a group of people communicating about a particular topic,
issue, or in a particular field
Text Producer
someone who creates a text
Implied Text Produce/Writer
the assumed creator of a text
Actual Text Producer/Writer
the actual creator of a text
Text Producer Positioning
how a text producer places or orientates themself to the
subject being presented and towards the audience or reader
Purpose
the reason a text has been created
primary purpose
the main reason that the text has been created (informing advert)
Secondary Purpose
the alternative reasons that the text has been created (informing advert which also entertains)
Allegory
a literary work in which the characters and events represent particular qualities or ideas relating to morals, politics or religion (animal farm)
Analogy
where two unrelated objects are compared for their shared qualities (just as a caterpillar must go through metamorphosis to become a butterfly, a person must go through struggles to grow stronger)
Anecdote
a short and interesting story, or an amusing event, often proposed to support or demonstrate a point
Antagonist
a character who opposes the main character (voldermort)
Antithesis
a person or thing that is the direct opposite of someone or something else (it was the best of times, it was the worst of times)
Aphorism
a short statement that is intended to express a general truth (if it aint broke dont fix it)
Apostrophe
addressing a person who is not present, or a thing that is personified (o romeo o romeo, time how quickly you pass)
Archetype
a typical example of something, or the original model of something from which others are copied (the hero: harry potter)
Asyndeton
where conjunctions are left out between words or parts of a sentence, often creating a list-like style (i came i saw conquered)
Bildungsroman
a narrative or novel about events and experiences in the life of the main character as they mature and become an adult (great expectations)
Caricature
a highly exaggerated representation of a character in a text, often for comic effect (tom in the great gatsby)
Catharsis
the release of strong or repressed emotions, usually by an audience (gatsbys death)
Characterisation
the act of creating and describing characters in literature, including their traits and psychological make-up
Chiasmus
when words, grammatical constructions or concepts are repeated in reverse order (fair is foul foul is fair)
Cliché
something or someone that is not at all original, surprising or interesting because it has very often been seen before (the hero saves the day)
Climax
the highest point of tension or drama in a piece of writing (gatsby and tom fight in the plaza hotel)
Denouement
the resolution of conflict in a narrative plot structure (blanches departure)
Deus Ex Machina
an unnatural or very unlikely end to a story or event, that solves or removes any problems easily (the martians in war of the worlds are just wiped out by bacteria not by the humans)
Dialogue
the exchange of spoken words between characters in a piece of writing
Direct Characterisation
when an author explicitly tells a reader directly what a character is like
Dramatic Irony
when the audience or reader knows something the characters in the story do not
Dystopian
an cruel or unfair society, especially an imaginary society in the future, in which there is a lot of hardship or suffering (the handmaids tale)
Epigraph
a poem, quotation, or sentence, usually placed at the beginning of a piece of writing (the quote from thomas parke d’invillers at the start of the great gatsby)
Exposition
the description or explanation of background information within a work of literature (nick provides us with info about him, the characters around him and long island in the summer)
Extended Metaphor
a metaphor that is further developed throughout all or part of a piece of writing (the farm in animal farm is an extended metaphor for the russain revolution and rise of soviet communism)
Falling Action
the part of the plot that occurs after the climax has been reached and the major conflict has happened (aftermath of gatsbys death)
Flashback
a device that moves the reader from the present moment in a chronological piece of writing to a scene in the past (offred 10,000 times in handmaids)
Foreshadowing
a device used by a writer to provide hints or clues to the reader or audience about what will happen later on in the text (nick foreshadows gatsbys death at the start)
Form
the type or genre of a text that a writer has chosen to use
Hamartia
the flaw in character which leads to the downfall of the protagonist in a tragedy (macbeths ambition)
Hubris
excessive pride or self-confidence (macbeth)
Imagery
the use of words to describe ideas or situations
Indirect Characterisation
revealing details about a character without explicitly or directly stating what they are like
In Media Res
a story which begins in the middle of events, without any introduction
Intertextuality
the relationship a text may have with other texts
Juxtaposition
the placement of two or more things side by side, often in order to bring out their differences
Litotes
understatement used for rhetorical effect (i wouldnt say no, thats not a bad idea)
Malapropism
the unintentional misuse of a word by confusion with one of similar sound, often with humorous results (escape goat - scapegoat)
Monologue
an extended speech uttered by one character, either to others or as if alone (blanches monologue about her past)
Motif
a recurring image or idea in a piece of writing (polka music, blue piano, cat screech in streetcar)
Narrative
the description of a series of events, usually in a novel
Omniscient Narrator
a narrator who is all-knowing about plot, characters as well as characters motivations and emotions (great expectations)
Oxymoron
a figure of speech that puts together opposite elements (deafening silence, bittersweet)
Paradox
a statement that contradicts itself, or that must be both true and untrue at the same time (less is more, war is peace)
Parallelism
where similar ideas are arranged in phrases, sentences, and paragraphs that balance one element with another of equal importance and similar wording (she enjoys reading, writing and swimming)
Parody
a humorous piece of writing, drama, or music which imitates the style of a well-known person or represents a familiar situation in an exaggerated way (south park)
Pathetic Fallacy
the use of inanimate objects, most commonly the weather, to reflect human feelings and tone (thunder in macbeth)
Persona
the narrative voice that a writer adopts for a specific piece of writing
Personification
giving human characteristics to an inanimate object, abstract thing or an animal (the wind whispered)
Polysyndeton
the overuse of the same connective
Prolepsis
where the order of events in a narrative is disrupted so that a future plot point is told earlier in the narrative than it actually occurs (scrooge seeing visions of his future)
Prose
written language in its ordinary form rather than set out as poetry
Protagonist
the chief character in a literary work (harry potter)
pun
the humorous use of a word or phrase that has several meanings or that sounds like another word (eggcellent, you cant tuna fish)
Repetition
the intentional repeating of certain words, phrases or other literary devices in a text
Rhetorical Question
a question that is used for dramatic effect that does not expect an answer
Rising Action
the section of the narrative that leads towards its climax (driving to the plaza hotel)
Satire
the use of humour, irony, exaggeration, or ridicule to expose and criticise people’s stupidity or vices (the power)
Soliloquy
a dramatic speech uttered by one character speaking aloud while alone on the stage (macbeth)
Stream Of Consciousness
a type of narration where a character’s every thought and feeling is expressed directly to the reader (offred)
Symbol
any image or thing that stands for something else
Symbolism
a literary device in which a writer uses one thing to represent something more abstract (serena joys garden)
Synecdoche
a figure of speech in which a part is made to represent the whole or vice versa (all hands on deck - hands represent the whole crew, the city that never sleeps - city refers to the people)
Tautology
the use of different words to say the same thing twice in the same statement (frozen ice, evening sunset, short summary)
Tone
the attitude that a character, narrator or writer takes towards a given subject
Trope
an idea, phrase or image that is recurrent in a writer’s work (the chosen one, love triangle, wise old mentor)
Compound Verb
a verb phrase made up of multiple words that function as a single verb (look over, turn on)
