Technical Vocabulary Flashcards
what is an Asyndetic list?
A list where commas are used to replace conjunctions (for example “run, fight, swim” as opposed to “run, fight, and swim”)
what is an anaphora?
Repetition of a word or phrase at the beginning of succcesive clauses (e.g. New House, new room, new books)
what is hendiadys?
Two words of similar meaning joined by a conjuction to create an emphatic consideration of the phrase’s meaning (e.g. “a good and virtuous nature”)
what is a metonym?
A word used as a substitute for something else with which it is closely associated e.g. number 10 = The Prime Minister
what is the denotation of a word?
the literal, dictionary definition of a word
what do you call a list where commas are used to replace conjunctions (for example “run, fight, swim” as opposed to “run, fight, and swim”)
asyndetic list
what do you call repetition of a word or phrase at the beginning of succesive clauses (e.g. New House, new room, new books)
anaphora
what do you call two words of similar meaning joined by a conjuction to create an emphatic consideration of the phrase’s meaning (e.g. “a good and virtuous nature”)
hendiadys
what do you call a word used as a substitute for something else with which it is closely associated e.g. number 10 = The Prime Minister
metonym
what do you call the literal, dictionary definition of a word
denotation
what is “run, fight, swim” an example of?
asyndetic list
New House, new room, new books
anaphora
a good and virtuous nature
hendiadys
number 10 = The Prime Minister
metonym
what are 2 words to replace “bad”?
- abhorrent
2. heinous
what are 2 words to replace “happy”?
- Euphoric
2. Jubilant
what are 2 words to replace “sad”?
melancholy and morose
what are three words to replace big?
- colossal
- immense
- gargantuan
what are two words to replace “small”?
- miniscule
2. microscopic
what are two words to replace the word “smart” (intelligent)?
- astute
2. shrewd
what are 2 words to replace “weak”?
- feeble
2. decrepit
name a word to replace “nice”
cordial
name a word to replace “lazy”
lackadaisical
what are two words to replace “strange”?
- paradoxical
2. outlandish
what is a foil (in literary terms)?
a foil is a character who contrasts with another character, usually the protagonist, to highlight qualities of that other character.
what is assonance?
the resemblance of sound between syllables of nearby words, arising particularly from the rhyming of two or more stressed vowels, but not consonants (e.g. sonnet, porridge ), but also from the use of identical consonants with different vowels (e.g. killed, cold, culled ).
what technique are “sonnet, porridge”, “killed, cold, culled” and “he fell asleep under the cherry tree” all examples of?
assonance
“sonnet, porridge” - rhyming of 2 or more stressed vowels
“killed, cold, culled” - repetition of the same consonant
“he fell asleep under the cherry tree” - repeated “ee” sound
what is consonance?
a literary device that refers to the repetition of the same consonant sounds in a line of text, e.g. “He struck a streak of bad luck.”, “Mike likes his new bike”
what is a word that describes something that differs from the norm (e.g. in 1974, Poland won the World Cup, but the success turned out to be a(n) _______, and Poland have not won a World Cup since)?
aberration
what is a verb that means to hate, detest
abhor
give a verb the means to agree without protesting (though Mr. Pospieszny wanted to stay outside and work in his garage, when his wife told that that he had better come in to dinner, he _______ to her demands)
Make sure you spell it right
acquiesce
give a noun that means eagerness or speed (e.g. for some reason, Simon loved to help his girlfriend whenever he could, so when his girlfriend asked him to set the table he did so with ________)
alacrity
give an adjective that means friendly (e.g. an _______ fellow, Neil got along with just about everyone)
amiable
give a verb that mean to calm or satisfy (e.g. when Jerry cries his mother gives him chocolate to _______ him)
appease
give an adjective that means obscure, secret or known only by a few (e.g. The ______ nature of Macbeth’s plot to kill Banquo…)
arcane
give a word that means excessive greed (The banker’s _______ led him to amass an enormous personal fortune)
avarice
what does avarice mean?
excessive greed
give an adjective that means excessively bold, brash, clear and obvious (e.g. Mr Birling’s ______ attempts to intimidate the inspector…)
brazen
give an adjective that means short, abrupt or dismissive (e.g. Scrooge’s _____ manner)
brusque
give a word that means to urge or to coax
cajole
give an adjective that means harsh, cold or unfeeling (The murderer’s ______ lack of remorse shocked the
jury).
callous
give a noun that means honesty or frankness (We were surprised by the _____ of the politician’s speech because she is usually rather evasive).
candour
give a verb that means to voice disapproval (Hania _____ed Gregory for his vulgar habits and sloppy appearance).
chide
give an adjective that means cautious (Though I promised Marta’s father I would bring her home promptly by midnight, it would have been more ______ not to have specified a time).
circumspect
what does circumspect mean?
(adj). cautious (Though I promised Marta’s father I would bring her home promptly by midnight, it would have been more circumspect not to have specified a time).
give an adjective that means secret (Announcing to her boyfriend that she was going to the library, Maria actually went to meet George for a _______ liaison).
clandestine
give a verb that means to make somebody do something by force or threat (The court decided that David Beckham did not have to honor the contract because he had been ______ into signing it).
coerced
give an adjective that means logically consistent, intelligible (William could not figure out what Harold had seen because he was too distraught to deliver a ______ statement).
coherent
give a noun that means self-satisfied ignorance of danger (Simon tried to shock his friends out of their ________ by painting a frightening picture of what might happen to them).
complacency
give a noun that means a person entrusted with secrets (Shortly after we met, he became my chief _______).
confidant
give a verb that means . to plot, scheme (She ______d to get me to give up my plans to start up a new business).
connive
give an adjective that means showing respect for another’s authority (Donata is always excessively ________ to any kind of authority figure).
deferential
give an adjective that means separated and narrow-minded; tight-knit, closed off (Because of the sensitive nature of their jobs, those who work for MI5 must remain _______ and generally only spend time with each other/scrooge’s ________nature)
insular
give a word that means stubbornly established by habit (I’m the first to admit that I’m an __________cider drinker—I drink four pints a day/Scrooges’s ________ avarice).
inveterate
Give a noun that means a common saying expressing a principle of conduct (Ms. Stone’s etiquette _______s are both entertaining and instructional).
maxim
give an adjective that means significant, conspicuous (One of the ______ differences between Alison and Helen is that Alison is a couple of kilos heavier).
salient
give an adjective that means not inclined to talk (Though Magda never seems to stop talking, her brother is quite _______).
taciturn
give an adjective that means deserving of respect because of age or achievement (e.g. Mr. Birling obviously believes himself to be ________/Mr. Birling’s salient belief in his ________ility)
venerable
