Language Techniques Flashcards
Alliteration
The occurrence of the same letter or sound and the beginning of adjacent or closely connected words
Allusion
Something that is designed to call something to mind without mentioning it
Ambiguity
A word or phrase which contains more than one meaning
Archaisms
A distinction between archaic or obsolete words very old or old fashioned style of language
Assonance
The repetition of vowel sounds to create an internal rhyming within phrases or sentences
Asyndetic listing
The act of leaving out one more of the usual conjunctions between sentence elements “I gave her food, clothes, water”
Caesura
A pause in a line that is formed by the rhythm of natural speech. A break in words.
Collective noun
Something that refers to a group
“Family” “herd” “subjects”
Colloquial language
Slang or differential language that is near/nature to a certain area
“Yo”
Dialogue
A conversation between two or more people
Direct address
The name of the person who is being directly spoken to
Elipsis
…
Euphemism
A mild or indirect word or expression substituted for one considered to be too harsh or too blunt. Can also be suggesting sexual nature.
Form
The structure of a text
Hyperbole
An exaggeration of something that is ordinary
Over exaggeration
Imagery
The term that appeals to our senses, creates a picture in our head.
Imperative mood
The form of the verbs that makes direct commands and requests
Metaphor
Something that is described as something else
“You are a couch potato”
Monologue
When a character exposes their personal thoughts and feeling through a speech to another character
Monosyllabic
a word with only one syllable or a person who uses short phrases.
Onomatopoeia
A word that sounds like its noise
“Bang” “crash”
Oxymoron
When two opposites are out together
“A feather of led”
Pathetic fallacy
When the weather reflects someone’s mood
Also; animals or inanimate things
Personification
When an object is described with human-like features
Plosive language
Consonant sounds that are formed by completely stopping airflow
Protagonist
The main character (the good character)
Repetition
A repetition of words or phrases after each other
Simile
Something that is described as being alike to something
“You are like a couch potato”
Stereotype
A character with generalised traits.
Stichomythia
Sequences of single alternating line or half lines used in drama
The emphasis that falls on certain syllables and not others
Stress
Superlatives
An adjective or adverb used to distinguish an object from three or more others of its type. “Good, better, BEST”
Syndetic listing
The opposite of asyndetic listing
“I gave her food and shelter and clothing”
Syntax
The way in which words and sentences are placed together in the writing.
Tautology
Reflective use of phrases or words that have similar meanings
“They arrived one after the other in succession”
Tricolon
Rhetorical term that consists of three parallel clauses
Abstract nouns
A naming word for an idea, concept, state of being or belief (not something you can touch)
Love, hate, jealousy, Christianity, Marxism, etc
Active verb
A word that represents a physical action
Eg jump, run, leap, ride
Comparative adjective
An adjective that relates one thing to another in some way
“Smarter”
“Better”
Declarative sentence
When a sentence makes a statement
Exclamatory sentence
When a sentence conveys a strong sense of emotion alarm or emphasis
Hypophora
A rhetorical question is immediately followed by an answer
“Is this the best film ever!?… yes!”
Imperative sentence
When a sentence is issuing a command
Interrogative sentence
When a sentence is asking a question
Litotes
Opposite of hyperbole - Downplaying something for effect
Modal verbs
An auxiliary verb that expresses a degree of possibility or necessity e.g might, could, must, should
Post modification
A descriptive technique where the descriptive words come after the thing they are describing.
“The wad of cash, which was BIG AND FAT”
Pre modification
A descriptive technique where the descriptive words come before the thing they are describing “the BIG, FAT wad of cash”
Pronoun
A word that takes the place of a noun in a sentence “he, she, they”
Register
The level of formality of a text
Statute verbs
A word that represents a process which is often mental e.g. thinking, loving, pondering, wondering
Syndedoche
A metaphor that states that something is only a consistent part of itself e.g. he has a new set of wheels (car)
