Syntax~ Flashcards
Anaphora
Definition: that features the repetition of a word or phrase at the beginning of successive sentences, phrases, or clauses Example #1: "Best of times". Example #2: "Age of wisdom".
Antithesis
Definition:
the rhetorical contrast of ideas by means of parallel arrangements of words, clauses, or sentences
Example #1:
“That’s one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.”
Example #2:
“Love is an ideal thing, marriage a real thing.”
Asyndeton
Definition:
figure of omission in which normally occurring conjunctions (and, or, but, for, nor, so, yet) are intentionally omitted in successive phrases, or clauses; a string of words not separated by normally occurring conjunctions
Example #1:
“… Thank you. He comes, he sleeps, he goes. So the plot thickens….”
Example #2:
“Be one of the few, the proud, the Marines.”
Polysyndeton
Definition:
figure of addition and emphasis which intentionally employs a series of conjunctions (and, or, but, for, nor, so, yet) not normally found in successive words, phrases, or clauses; the deliberate and excessive use of conjunctions in successive words or clauses
Example #1:
Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night stays these couriers.
Example #2:
“I wore a sweater, and a hat, and a scarf, and a pair of boots, and mittens.”
Parallel sentence
Definition: a rhetorical device that consists of repetition among adjacent sentences or clauses Example #1: "I live, I love, I laugh." Example #2: "Work stinks, bus stinks, dog stinks."
Loose sentence
Definition:
the independent clause is at the beginning, followed by one or more dependent clauses.
Example #1:
I went to the movies yesterday, bought candy, and shopped at the mall.
Example #2:
The renovated mall is finally opening today, with an ice skating rink and a multiplex theater.
Periodic sentence
Definition:
a sentence in which the completion of the main clause is left to the end, thus creating an effect of suspense
Example #1:
In spite of heavy snow and cold temperatures, the game continued.
Example #2:
“I couldn’t wait any longer, I went to sleep.”
Rhetorical question
Definition:
is asked just for effect, or to lay emphasis on some point being discussed when no real answer is expected
Example #1:
“If Winter comes, can Spring be far behind?”
Example #2:
“How could I be so stupid?”
Inverted syntax
Definition:
a style of writing that places unexpected emphasis on objects or verbs in sentences
Example #1:
Rather than saying “Tomorrow we’ll go to the park,” one might invert the order and say, “Tomorrow to the park we’ll go.”
Example #2:
Instead of “he never felt so embarrassed” it would be “Never has he felt so embarrassed”
Alliteration
Definition:
figure of emphasis that occurs through the repetition of initial consonant letters (or sounds) in two or more different words across successive sentences, clauses, or phrases
Example #1:
Claire, close your cluttered closet.
Example #2:
Shut the shutters before the shouting makes you shudder.
Assonance
Definition:
figure of repetition in which different words with the same or similar vowel sounds occur successively in words with different consonants
Example #1:
Edgar Allan Poe’s “Annabelle Lee”: “And so all the night-tide, I lie down by the side of my darling-my darling-my life and my bride.”
Example #2:
The light of the fire is a sight.
Consonance
Definition:
the repetition of the same consonant sounds in a line of text
Example #1:
“Traffic figures, on July Fourth, will be tough.”
Example #2:
“Zach sneezed when he heard jazz music.”
Sentence Length
Definition: the number of words in a sentence Example #1: There is seven words in this sentence. Example #2: In the phrase, "How is your day?", there is four words.
