Terms for AP Exam

Question 1

Periodic sentence

Answer 1

a sentence that presents its central meaning in a main clause at the end. This independent clause is preceded by a phrase or clause that cannot stand alone. The effect of a periodic sentence is to add emphasis and structural variety

Question 2

Loose sentence

Answer 2

a type of sentence in which the main idea (independent clause) comes first, followed by dependent grammatical units such as phrases and clauses.

Question 3

Telegraphic sentence

Answer 3

A sentence that expresses a straightforward, no-frills idea or action. Telegraphic sentences contain no unnecessary words. Usually shorter than 5 words in length.

Question 4

Declarative sentence

Answer 4

Kind of sentence that makes a statement or that “declares” something
“The king is sick”

Question 5

Imperative sentence

Answer 5

relating to, or constituting the mood that expresses a command or request.
“Cure the king”

Question 6

Pun

Answer 6

a play on the sound of words to achieve a certain effect.

Question 7

Personification

Answer 7

A figure of speech in which the author presents or describes concepts, animals, or inanimate objects by endowing them with human attributes or emotions. Used to make abstractions, animals, or objects

Question 8

Apostrophe

Answer 8

The act of addressing some abstraction or personification that is not physically present

Question 9

Hyperbole

Answer 9

A boldly exaggerated statement that adds emphasis without in-tending to be literally true

Question 10

Exclamatory Sentence

Answer 10

Makes an exclamation.

“The king is dead; long live the king!”

Question 11

Simple sentence

Answer 11

A sentence with 1 subject, 1 predicate “Van Gogh painted The Starry Night”.

Question 12

Compound sentences

Answer 12

two or more independent clauses joined with coordinating conjunctions, transitional words/phrases, semicolons, or colons “The saxophone does not belong to the brass family; in fact, it is a member of the woodwind family.”

Question 13

Complex sentences

Answer 13

one independent clause and one dependent clause. “After the town was evacuated, the hurricane began”

Question 14

Compound-Complex sentences

Answer 14

two or more independent clauses and at least one dependent clause. “When small foreign imports began dominating the US automobile industry, consumers were very responsive, but American auto workers were dismayed.”

Question 15

Interrogative sentence

Answer 15

Asks a question

“Is the king sick”

Question 16

Balanced sentence

Answer 16

The phrase and clauses balance each other by virtue of their likeliness of structure, meaning, or length.
“He maketh me to lie down in a green pastures; he leadeth me besie the still waters”

Question 17

Participle

Answer 17

A word that looks like a verb but is used as an adjective “The crying baby reached for its mother”

Question 18

Gerunds

Answer 18

a verb that is functioned as a noun “Chewing with your mouth open always impresses people.”

Question 19

Infinitives

Answer 19

A word that looks like a verb but is used as a noun, adjective, or adverb. “TO FLY far away would be wonderful.”

Question 20

Antecedent

Answer 20

The word, phrase, or clause referred to by a pronoun.
The AP language exam occasionally asks for the antecedent of a given pronoun in a long, complex sentence or in a group of sentences.
A question from the 2001 AP test as an example follows:
“But it is the grandeur of all truth which can occupy a very high place in human interests that it is never
absolutely novel to the meanest of minds; it exists eternally, by way of germ of latent principle, in the lowest as
in the highest, needing to be developed but never to be planted.”
The antecedent of “it” (bolded) is…? [answer: “all truth”]

Question 21

Difference between Antimetabole and Chiasmus

Answer 21

Antimetabole is not very much different from chiasmus, only that in an antimetabole the words and grammatical structure is also reversed because just reversing the meaning is not enough. So in the light of the above mentioned facts, it can be deduced that all the antimetaboles are chiasmus, but not all instances of chiasmus are antimetaboles.

Question 22

Parallelism

Answer 22

Similarity of structure in a pair or series of related words, phrases or clauses. It emphasizes similarities and connections. “He tried to make the law, clear precise, and equitable.”

Question 23

Isocolon

Answer 23

Use of parallel elements similar not only in structure, as in parallelism,but in length(like same #of words, sometimes syllables). Similarity of structure contributes to the rhythm of the sentence. “His purpose was to impress the ignorant, to perplex dubious, and to confound the scrupulous”

Question 24

Anastrophe

Answer 24

Changing the syntactical order of word. “To market went she.”

Question 25

Euphemism

Answer 25

are a more agreeable or less offensive substitute for a generally unpleasant word or concept. May be used to adhere to standards of social or political correctness or to add humor or ironic understatement. Saying “earthly remains” rather than “corpse” is an example.

Question 26

Parenthesis

Answer 26

Insertion of some verbal unit in a position that interrupts the normal syntactical flow of the sentence. Allows the author’s voice to be heard commenting or editorializing, thereby charging the statement with emotion. “But wherein any man is bold-I am speaking foolishly- I am so bold…”

Question 27

Ellipses

Answer 27

Deliberate omission of a word or of words which are readily implied by the context. An artful and arresting means of securing economy of expression. “And he to England shall along with YOU.”

Question 28

Asyndeton

Answer 28

Veni, vidi, vici. Deliberate omission of conjunction between a series of related clauses produces a hurried rhythm of in the sentence. “I came, I saw, I conquered.”

Question 29

Polysyndeton

Answer 29

Opposite of the asyndeton. Deliberate use of many conjunctions.
“There’s a cat and it has black hair and cute and it’s ugly at the same time.”

Question 30

Alliteration

Answer 30

The repetition of sounds, especially initial consonant sounds in two or more neighboring words (as in “she sells sea shells”)

Question 31

Antithesis

Answer 31

The juxtaposition of contrasting ideas, often in parallel structure. Emphasizes the similarities and contraries; produces the quality of an aphorism:
“Though studious he was popular; though argumentative he was modest; though inflexible, he was candid; and though metaphysical, yet orthodox.”

Question 32

Apposition

Answer 32

Placing side by side to coordinate elements, the second of which serves as an explanation or modification of the first. Less intrusive than parenthesis, it allows for one insertion of an additional information or emphasis. “John Morgan, the president of the sons of the Republic, could not be reached by the phone.”

Question 33

Assonance

Answer 33

The repetition of similar vowel sounds, preceded and followed by different consonants, in the stressed syllables of adjacent words. Produces euphonious, onomatopoetic or humorous effect
“An old, mad, blInd, despIsed, and dYing king.”

Question 34

Euphony

Answer 34

Language that is smooth and musically pleasant to the ear. Opposite of Cacophony.” The majestic euphony of Milton’s poetry.”

Question 35

Anaphora

Answer 35

A sub-type of parallelism, when the exact repetition of words or phrases at the beginning of successive lines or sentences.

Question 36

Epistrophe

Answer 36

Repetition of a concluding word or word endings.

Question 37

Epanalepsis

Answer 37

Repetition at end of a clause of the word that occurred at the beginning of the clause. Gives language an appearance of emotional spontaneity “BLOOD hath brought BLOOD, and BLOWS have answered BLOWS…”

Question 38

Anadiplosis

Answer 38

Repetition of the last word of one clause and the beginning of the following clause. “Labor and care are rewarded with success, success, success produces confidence, confidence relaxes industry…”

Question 39

Antimetabole

Answer 39

Repetition of words, in successive clauses, in reverse grammatical order. Produces the impressive turn of phrase typical of an aphorism. “One should eat to live, not live to eat.”

Question 40

Chiasmus

Answer 40

Reversal of grammatical structure in successive phrases or clauses. Similar to antimetabole, but without the repetition “By day the frolic, and the dance by night.”

Question 41

Polyptoton

Answer 41

Repetition of words derived from the same root. Similar to word play, but the meanings of the words do not lose their literal meaning. “The greeks are STRONG, and SKILLFUL to their STRENGTH. FIERCE to their SKILL, and to their FIERCENESS valiant.”

Question 42

Metaphor

Answer 42

a figure of speech in which a word or phrase is applied to an object or action to which it is not literally applicable.

Question 43

Simile

Answer 43

a figure of speech involving the comparison of one thing with another thing of a different kind, used to make a description more emphatic or vivid (e.g., as brave as a lion, crazy like a fox ).

Question 44

Climax

Answer 44

Arrangement of words, phrases or clauses in an order of increasing importance. “My love, my life, myself.”

Question 45

Ambiguity

Answer 45

doubtfulness or uncertainty of meaning or intention AND The multiple meanings, either intentional or unintentional, of a word, phrase, sentence, or passage.

Question 46

Synechdoche

Answer 46

Fig. of speech in which a part stands for the whole. “All HANDS on deck.”

Question 47

Metonymy

Answer 47

a figure of speech that is a substitution of some attributive or suggestive word for what is actually meant. “I gave him the COLD SHOULDER, but a WARM HAND to her.”

Question 48

Archetype

Answer 48

An original model or pattern from which other later copies are made, especially a character, an action, or situation that seems to represent common patterns of human life. Think of it as the biggest cliché ever, but one that never dies. For Example: The damsel in distress rescued from a hideous monster by a handsome young man who later marries the girl

Question 49

Litotes

Answer 49

Deliberate use of understatement, not to deceive someone but to enhance the impressiveness of what is stated. “To write is, indeed, mo unpleasing employment.”

Question 50

Rhetorical Question

Answer 50

Asking a question, not for the purpose of eliciting an answer but for the purpose of asserting or denying something up obliquely. Which rhetorical questions can be an effective persuasive device, subtly influencing the kind of response one wants to get from an audience, and are often more effective as a persuasive device than a direct assertion

Question 51

Irony

Answer 51

The contrast between what is stated explicitly and what is really meant, or the difference between what appears to be and what is actually true. Irony is often used to create poignancy or humor. In general, there are three major types of irony used in language:

(1) verbal irony – when the words literally state the opposite of the writer’s (or speaker’s) meaning 
(2) situational irony – when events turn out the            opposite of what was expected; when what the characters and readers think ought to happen is not what does happen 
 (3) dramatic irony – when facts or events are unknown to a character in a play or piece of fiction but known to the reader, audience, or other characters in the work

Question 52

Sarcasm

Answer 52

ironic bitter, caustic language that is meant to hurt or ridicule someone or something. It may use irony as a device, but not all ironic statements are sarcastic.

Question 53

Onomatopoeia

Answer 53

A figure of speech in which natural sounds are imitated in the sounds of words. Simple examples include such words as buzz, hiss, hum, crack, whinny, and murmur.

Question 54

Paradox

Answer 54

An apparently contradictory statement that nevertheless contains a measure of truth. Paradox is like oxymoron and that both are built on contradictories, but paradoxes may not be a trope all, because it involves not so much a “turn” of meaning and juxtaposed as a “turn” of meaning in the whole statement. For example, “Art is a form of lying to tell the truth.”

Question 55

Oxymoron

Answer 55

The yoking of two terms that are ordinarily contradictory. By thus combining contradictories, writers produce a startling effect. If fresh and apt, oxymorons display the subtle and shrewd ability to see similarities. “O miserable abundance of beggarly riches!” OR “luxurious poverty”, “jumbo shrimp”.

Question 56

Aphorism

Answer 56

A terse statement of known authorship which expresses a general truth or a moral principle. (If the authorship is unknown, the statement is generally considered to be a folk proverb.) Can be a memorable summation of the author’s point.

Question 57

Begging the question (also Circular Reasoning)

Answer 57

Happens when the writer presents an arguable point as a fact that supports the argument. This error leads to an argument that goes around and around, w/ evidence making the same claim as the proposition. Because it is much easier to make a claim than to support it, many writers fall in this trap. “These movies are popular b/c they make so much money. They make a lot of money b/c people like them. People like them b/c they are so popular”

Question 58

Non sequitur

Answer 58

Does not follow a logical sequence. The conclusion doesn’t logically follow the explanation. These fallacies can be found on both the sentence level and the level of the argument itself. “The rain came down so hard that Jennifer actually called me” (the rain and phone call have nothing to do w/ each other)

Question 59

Faulty analogies

Answer 59

They lead to faulty conclusions. Writers often use similar situations to explain a relationship. Sometimes, though, being extended comparisons and metaphors attempt to relate ideas or situations that upon closer inspection aren’t really that similar. Be sure that the ideas you’re comparing are really related. Also remember that even though analogies can offer support and insight, they can’t prove anything. EXAMPLE: “Forcing students to attend cultural events is like herding cattle to slaughter. The students stampede into the event where they are systematically ‘put to sleep’ by the program.” While analogy is vivid, the difference between cultural events and cattle slaughter is so vast that the analogy becomes a fallacy.

Question 60

Hasty generalizations

Answer 60

Base an argument on insufficient evidence. Writers may draw conclusions too quickly, not considering the whole issue. They may look only at a small group as representative of the whole or may look only at a small piece of that issue. EXAMPLE:Concluding that all fraternities are party houses because you have seen three parties at one fraternity is a hasty generalization. The evidence is too limited to draw an adequate conclusion.

Question 61

Post Hoc, Ergo Propter Hoc (also, “post hoc propter hoc” argument, or the “too much of a coincidence” argument)

Answer 61

Assume a faulty casual relationship. One event following another in time does not mean that the first event caused the later event. Writers must be able to prove that one event caused another event and did not simply follow in time. Because the cause is so often in question in this fallacy, we sometimes call it a false cause fallacy. “Eating five candy bars and drinking two sodas before a test helps me get better grades. I did that and got an A on my last test in history.” This arguer ignores other possible causes like how he had studied and how easy the test was.

Question 62

Red herrings

Answer 62

Have little relevance to the argument at hand. Desperate arguers often try to change the ground of the argument by changing the subject. The new subject may be related to the original argument, but does little to resolve it. “Wenthrop should pave the lot behind the Dinkins. Besides, I can never find a parking space on campus anyway.” The writer has changed the focus of the argument from paving to the scarcity of parking spaces, two ideas that may be related, but are not the same argument.

Question 63

Equivocation

Answer 63

Happens when the writer makes use of words multiple meanings and changes the meaning in the middle of the argument without really telling the audience about the shift. Often when we use big or ambiguous words like “right”, “justice”, or “experience”, we aren’t sure ourselves what we mean. Be sure to know how you are using a word and stick with the meaning throughout your argument. If you need to change meanings for any reason, let your audience know of the change. For example, when representing himself in court, a defendant said “I have told the truth, and I have always heard that the truth would set me free.” In this case, the arguer switches the meaning of the truth. In the first instance, he were refers to the truth as an accurate representation of the events; in the second, he paraphrases a biblical passage that refers to truth as a religious absolute. while the argument may be catchy and memorable, the double references failed to support his claim.

Question 64

Opposing a Straw Man

Answer 64

Is a tactic used by a lot of writers because they find it easier to refute oversimplified opposition. Writers may also pick only the opposition’s weakest or most insignificant point to refute. Doing so diverse attention from the real issues and rarely, if ever, leads to resolution or truth. For example, the debate over drink machines centers around cost and choice. Opponents of the new drink machines bring up the location of an important issue. This is significant point has revelance to actual issues.

Question 65

Slipper Slopes (also, the Domino Theory)

Answer 65

Suggest that one will inevitably lead to more, eventually negative steps. While sometimes the results may be negative, the slipper slope argues that the descent is inevitable and unalterable. Stirring up emotions against the downward slipping, this fallacy can be avoided by providing solid evidence of the eventuality rather than speculation. “If we force public elementary school pupils to wear uniforms, eventually we will require middle school to wear uniforms. If we require middle school students to wear uniforms, high school requirements are not far off.”

Question 66

Bandwagon Appeals (Ad Populum) (also, Argument from Common Sense, Argumentum ad populum)

Answer 66

Tries to get everyone on board. Writers who use this approach try to convince readers that everyone believes, so the reader should too. The fact that a lot of believe it, does not make it true. “50 million Elvis fans can’t be wrong!” Of course they can. The merit of Elvis is not related to how many people do or do mot like him or his music.

Question 67

False authority

Answer 67

Is a tactic used by many writers, especially in advertising. An authority in one field may know nothing of another field. Being knowledgeable in one are doesn’t constitute knowledge in other areas. EXAMPLE: a popular sports star may know a lot about football, but very little about shaving cream. His expertise on the playing field does not qualify him to intelligently discuss the benefits of aloe.

Question 68

Ad Hominem

Answer 68

Argument limit themselves not to the issues, but to the opposition itself. Writers who fall into this fallacy attempt to refute the claims of the opposition by bringing the opposition’s character into question. These arguments ignore the issues and attack the people. “Candidate A claims that candidate B cannot possibly be an advocate for the working people because he enjoys the opera more than professional wrestling.” Candidate B’s personal entertainment preferences probably have little, if anything to do with this stance on the labor laws.

Question 69

Tu Quoque

Answer 69

Fallacies that avoid the real argument by making similar charges against the opponent. Like ad hominem arguments, they do little to arrive at a conflict resolutions. “How can the police to give me for speeding? I see cops speeding all the time.”

Question 70

Invective

Answer 70

insulting, abusive, or highly critical language.

Question 71

Colloquial

Answer 71

used in ordinary or familiar conversation; not formal or literary