Lit Terms Flashcards
Alliteration
The repetition of the same or similar consonant sounds in words that are close together.
Allegory
A story or poem in which characters, settings, and events stand for other people or events or for abstract ideas or qualities.
Allusion
A reference to someone or something that is known from history, literature, religion, politics, sports, science etc.
Ambiguity
A technique by which a writer deliberately suggests two or more different and sometimes conflicting meanings in a work.
Analogy
A comparison made between two things to show how they are alike.
Aphorism
A brief cleverly worded statement that makes a wise observation about life.
Appositive
A noun or noun phrase that renames or adds identifying information to a noun it immediately follows.
Antecedent
The noun to which a pronoun refers.
Apostrophe
A technique be which a writer addresses an inanimate object, idea, or dead/ absent person.
Clause
A group of related words that contains a subject and predicate.
Clichè
A word or phrase often a figure of speech, that has become lifeless because of overuse.
Colloquial/ Colloquialism
A word or expression appropriate to informal conversation but not usually suitable for academic or business writing.
Conceit
An elaborate metaphor that compares two things that are startlingly different.
Connotation
The associations and emotional overtones that have become attached to a work or phrase.
Diction
A speaker or writers choice of words
Dependent Clause
A group of words that includes a subject and verb but is subordinate to an independent clause in a sentence.
Abstract Language
Language describing ideas and qualities rather than observable things.
Annotation
A note of explanation or comment added to a text or diagram.
Antithesis
A contrast it opposition between two things.
Atmosphere
Creates an emotional situation that surrounds the reader.
Attitude
Authors feelings towards the subject.
Concrete Detail or Language
Words that are specific and describe using senses.
Denotation
Literal or primary meaning of a word in contrast to the feelings or ideas the word suggests.
Didactic
Intended to teach, particularly in having moral instruction as an ulterior motive.
Equivocation
The use of ambiguous language to conceal the truth.
Euphemism
Mild or indirect word substituted for a word too harsh while referring to something unpleasant.
Extended Metaphor
A comparison between two things that extends over multiple lines.
Figurative Language
Uses words or expressions with a meaning different from literal interpretation.
Genre
A category of literature
Gerund
The -ing form of a verb that functions as a noun.
Hyperbole
Figure of speech that used and incredible exaggeration or overstatement.
Imagery
The use of language to evoke a picture or sensation.
Inference/ Infer
Deduce from evidence and reasoning rather than from statements.
Invective
Insulting, abusive, or highly critical language.
Inversion
The reversal of the normal word order in a sentence or phrase.
Irony
A discrepancy between appearances and reality.
Loose Sentence
A sentence that begins with the main idea.
Metaphor
Compares two unlike things without usual comparison words (like or as).
Mood
Inducing a particular feeling or state of mind.
Motif
A distinctive feature or dominant idea in a literary composition.
Narrative
The form of discourse that tells about a series of events.
Non Sequitor
Literary device used for comedic purposes and has a lack of meaning to the point of confusion.
Onomatopoeia
The use of sound that echoes their senses.
Oxymoron
Combines opposite or contradictory terms in a brief phrase.
Paradox
A statement that appears self-contradictory, but reveals a kind of truth.
Parallel Structure
Repetition of words or phrases with similar grammatical structures.
Parody
A work that makes fun of another work by imitating some aspect of the writer style.
Pedantic
An adjective that describes words phrases or general tone that is overly academic
Periodic Sentence
A sentence that ends with the main idea
Personification
A figure of speech in which an object or animal is given human feelings thoughts and actions or attitudes
Point of View
The vantage point from which the writer tells a story
Predicate
The verb and it’s related birds in a clause or sentence and expresses what the subject does.
Prose
Written in ordinary language
Refute
To prove something to be wrong
Repetition
Recurrence of something already written or said
Rhetoric
Effective or persuasive speaking or writing
Sarcasm
The use of irony to mock or convey contempt
Satire
A type of writing that ridicules people or institutions to bring about change
Semantics
The meaning of the word phrase sentence or text
Simile
A comparison between two unlike things using like or as than or resembles
Stream of Consciousness
A style of writing the portrays the inner workings of the characters mind
Style
The distinctively in which a writer uses language
Subordinate Clause
A clause dependent on the main clause in a sentence
Syllogism
An instance of a form of reasoning in which a conclusion is drawn
Symbol
A person place or thing that has meaning in it’s self and stands for something more than itself
Synecdoche
A figure of speech in which a part represents the whole
Syntax
The order or arrangement of words in a sentence
Theme
The insight about human life that is revealed in a literary work
Thesis
A statement or theory that’s put forward as a premise to be maintained or proved
Tone
The attitude a writer takes toward the subject the characters or the audience
Transition
A word or words the aids coherence in writing by showing the connections between ideas
Understatement
Statement this is less than what is meant
Voice
The attributes of a verb that indicates whether it’s subject is active or passive.
Wit
Elements in literary work that is designed to cause amusement or laughter
