Rhetorical Terms

Question 1

diction

Answer 1

word choice

Question 2

syntax

Answer 2

study of rules of forming grammatical sentences

Question 3

metaphor

Answer 3

something used to represent something else

Question 4

simile

Answer 4

two unlike things compared with “like” or “as”

Question 5

personification

Answer 5

to give a nonhuman object human qualities

Question 6

hyperbole

Answer 6

obvious exaggeration

Question 7

litotes

Answer 7

understatement

Question 8

metonymy

Answer 8

figure of speech: use of an object’s name that is related to another, ex. “count heads” for “count people”

Question 9

synecdoche

Answer 9

when a part is used for a whole or the whole for a part

Question 10

oxymoron

Answer 10

self-contradictory effect, “cruel kindness”

Question 11

alliteration

Answer 11

two or more stressed syllables of a word group with the same consonant or sound group, consonantal or vocalic alliteration

Question 12

allusion

Answer 12

casual reference, mention of something directly or implied

Question 13

imagery

Answer 13

formation of mental images

Question 14

aphorism

Answer 14

saying of general truth/observation, ex. “Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely.”

Question 15

archaic diction

Answer 15

commonly used in an earlier time, but rare in present-day except to suggest older time

Question 16

colloquialism

Answer 16

informal

Question 17

parallelism

Answer 17

agreement in direction, tendency, or character

Question 18

antithesis

Answer 18

suggesting an opposing idea to provide a balanced contrast of ideas

Question 19

antimetabole

Answer 19

opposite of turning about

Question 20

juxtaposition

Answer 20

act of putting side by side usually to compare and contrast

Question 21

anaphora

Answer 21

use of a word for a regular grammatical substitute for a word or group of words

Question 22

asynedeton/polysyndeton

Answer 22

leaving out conjunctions

Question 23

inductive/deductive reasoning

Answer 23

logical reasoning (top-down logic)

Question 24

cumulative sentence

Answer 24

independent clause followed by series of subordinate constructions

Question 25

periodic sentence

Answer 25

main clause at the end, so reasons for something before the final point is made, cab create suspense/interest for reader

Question 26

declarative sentence

Answer 26

makes statement and ends with period

Question 27

hortative sentence

Answer 27

encourages action

Question 28

imperative sentence

Answer 28

gives command

Question 29

inversion

Answer 29

inverted sentence order

Question 30

denotation

Answer 30

literal meaning of word, not feelings or ideas the word suggests

Question 31

connotation

Answer 31

idea or feeling word suggests along with literal meaning

Question 32

zuegma

Answer 32

verb or adjective applies to more than one noun, blending different ideas

Question 33

apostrophe

Answer 33

exclamatory passage in speech or poem addressed to a person (typically dead or absent) or thing (typically personified)

Question 34

stream of consciousness

Answer 34

literary style: character’s thoughts, feelings, and reactions are described in a flow uninterrupted by objective description of conventional dialogue