Literary Terms G-M

Question 0

genre

Answer 0

the major category into which a literary work fits (prose, poetry, and drama)

Question 1

generic conventions

Answer 1

refers to tradition for each genre

Question 2

homily

Answer 2

literally “sermon”, or any serious talk, speech, or lecture providing moral or spiritual advice

Question 3

hyperbole

Answer 3

a figure of speech using deliberate exaggeration or overstatement

Question 4

imagery

Answer 4

the sensory details or figurative language used to describe, arouse emotion, or represent abstractions

Question 5

infer (inference)

Answer 5

to draw a reasonable conclusion from the information presented

Question 6

invective

Answer 6

an emotionally violent, verbal denunciation or attack using strong, abusive language

Question 7

irony

Answer 7

the contrast between what is stated explicitly and what is really meant

Question 8

verbal irony

Answer 8

words literally state the opposite of speakers true meaning

Question 9

situational irony

Answer 9

events turn out the opposite of what was expected

Question 10

dramatic irony

Answer 10

facts or events are unknown to a character but known to the reader or audience or other characters in work

Question 11

loose sentence

Answer 11

a type of sentence in which the main idea comes first, followed by dependent grammatical units

Question 12

metaphor

Answer 12

a figure of speech using implied comparison of seemingly unlike things or the substitution of one for the other, suggesting some similarity

Question 13

metonymy

Answer 13

from the Greek “changed label”, the name of one object is substituted for that of another closely associated with it (the White House for the President)

Question 14

mood

Answer 14

grammatically, the verbal units and a speakers attitude (indicative, subjunctive, imperative); literally, the prevailing atmosphere or emotional aura of a word