English Literary Terms 2012

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anaphora

Back 1

the repetition of words at the beginning of successive clauses

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antecedent

Back 2

the noun to which a later pronoun refers

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antimetabole

Back 3

the repetition of words in an inverted order to sharpen a contrast

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aphorism

Back 4

a short, astute statement of a general truth

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appositive

Back 5

A relation between expressions that have the same function and the same relation to other words in the sentence

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Aristotelian triangle

Back 6

A diagram that represents a rhetorical situation as the relationship among the speaker, the subject, and the audience

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asyndenton

Back 7

Leaving out conjunctions between words, phrases, and clauses

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Colloquialism

Back 8

An informal or conversational use of language

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connotation

Back 9

That which is implied by a word, as opposed to the words literal meaning

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concession

Back 10

A reluctant acknowledgment or yielding

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coordination

Back 11

a compound grammatical construction

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cumulative sentence

Back 12

a sentence that begins with the subject and predicate; then adds a series of phrases that explains the idea of the independent clause

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denotation

Back 13

the literal meaning of a word

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diction

Back 14

choice of words

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elegiac

Back 15

Mournful over what has passed or been lost; often used to describe tone

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epigram

Back 16

a short, often satirical poem often dealing with a single subject and usually ending with a witty or ingenious turn of thought

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expletive

Back 17

A sentence that begins with it or there and a from of the verb to be instead of the subject

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gerund

Back 18

An -ing form of a verb acting as a noun

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hortatory

Back 19

Urging to do some course of conduct or action; persuading or encouraging

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hyperbole

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exaggeration for the purpose of emphasis

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Imperative sentence

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A sentence that Requests or commands

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Induction

Back 22

Type of reasoning that explains a specific topic to a general topic

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Intransitive verb

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A verb that does not take a direct object

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Metonymy

Back 24

Use of an aspect of something to represent the whole

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Nominalization

Back 25

Turing a verb or adjective into a noun

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Omniscent narrator

Back 26

An all-knowing, usually third-person narrator

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Periodic sentence

Back 27

A sentence that, by leaving the completion of its main clause to the end, produces an effect of suspense

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Polemic

Back 28

An argument against the idea, usually regarding philosophy, politics, or religion

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Polysyndeton

Back 29

The deliberate use of a series of conjunctions

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Premise

Back 30

A statement that the speaker believes will prove their argument

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Satire

Back 31

An ironic, sarcastic, or witty composition that claims to argue for something, but actually argues against it

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Straw man

Back 32

A logical fallacy that involves the creation of an easily refutable position; misrepresenting then attacking an opponent's position

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Subordination

Back 33

De-emphasizing one grammatical element by making it dependent on another independent element

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Subordinate clause

Back 34

Created by a subordinating conjunction, a clause that modifies an independent clause

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Syllogismt

Back 35

A formal deductive argument made up of a major premise, a minor premise, and a conclusion

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Trope

Back 36

A word, phrase, expression or image that is used in a figurative way, usually for rhetorical effect

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Zeugma

Back 37

The use of a word to modify or govern two or more words when it is appropriate to only one often or is appropriate, but in a different way