English Terms (2Nd Set)

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Allusion

Back 1

A reference to any element of history, literature, or other media that an author assumes a reader will recognize.

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Analogy

Back 2

An expository technique in which a comparison is made between one quantity that is abstract and difficult to understand and another quantity that is concrete and easy to understand.

Front 3

Analysis

Back 3

Refers to literary criticism, which treats the text as a self-contained entity that can be better understood by examining in detail how its parts work in relation to the whole.

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Anecdote

Back 4

A short narrative episode embedded in an otherwise non-narrative work used for the purpose of introducing a topic or leading towards a thesis.

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Antithesis

Back 5

The close placement of contrasting ideas, often in parallel grammatical structure.

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Aphorism

Back 6

A short, cleverly phrased statement (often in antithetical form) of what is regarded as truth.

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Archaism

Back 7

A word or expression that has become obsolete in current common speech, one that is considered old-fashioned.

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Argument

Back 8

A mode of writing in which the writer's purpose is to influence the reader to accept a particular side of a debatable issue.

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Audience

Back 9

The individual or group of people that a work addresses or to whom it appeals

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Balance

Back 10

The expression of two ideas or images in parallel grammatical structures, for the purpose of emphasizing contrasting or similar ideas.

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Chiasmus

Back 11

A form of balanced expression in which the syntactical elements of one phrase or clause are reversed in the following one.

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Clarity

Back 12

The quality of clearness in writing - where there is no ambiguity in a writer's intention.

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Cliche

Back 13

An expression or individual word choice that may once have been considered fresh and particularly expressive, but which has come to be so overused that it is no longer vivid or even truly meaningful.

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Coherence

Back 14

A principle of writing which asserts that the elements of a work should relate clearly and logically to each other—that is, writing that flows smoothly and sensibly.

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Colloquialism

Back 15

A word or phrase that is acceptable in the ordinary conversation of a specific group of people or geographical region, but that is considered inappropriate in formal writing.

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Connotation

Back 16

The extra meanings that accompany a word aside from its denotation.

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Context

Back 17

The part or parts of a passage preceding and/or following a particular segment of text and that significantly affect the meaning of that segment.

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Deductive Reasoning

Back 18

Exposition in which the writer applies a known principle or established generalization to a single situation, believing that the principle will explain the situation

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Denotation

Back 19

The literal meaning of, or dictionary definition, of a word aside from its connotation.

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Development

Back 20

The strategies by which, to an extent by which, a writer supports key ideas in an essay.

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Diction

Back 21

Word choice.

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Didactic Tone

Back 22

Describes the tone or style used by a writer whose purpose is to provide guidance, especially in moral matters.

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Emphasis

Back 23

An assigning of the appropriate degree or intensity of importance to a particular idea, image, or sonic quality in a work.

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Equivocation

Back 24

A form of verbal irony (therefore ambiguity), it is a statement in which a speaker, in strictly logical terms, is telling the truth, but nevertheless knowingly deceiving his hearer.

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Euphemism

Back 25

A mild or inoffensive word or phrase used in place of one that some may find too direct or offensive.

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Exposition

Back 26

A form of non-fiction prose in which the writer's purpose is to explain through the presentation of ideas focusing on a certain topic.

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Fallacy

Back 27

A flaw in the logic of an argument.

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Humanism

Back 28

A philosophical orientation that focuses on the distinctively human world, as opposed to the divine, the material, or the pragmatic world.

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Hyperbole

Back 29

Intentional overstatement or exaggeration.

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Imagery

Back 30

Words or phrases that create mental pictures.

Front 31

Inductive Reasoning

Back 31

Exposition in which the writer examines specific pieces of evidence and from them draws a generalization.

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Inference

Back 32

A conclusion drawn from facts that have been presented or statements made.

Front 33

Irony

Back 33

A general term describing the contrast or discrepancy between what is and what appears to be or what happens and what was expected.

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Dramatic Irony

Back 34

A form of irony in which the speaker is unaware of the discrepancy between what he/she says and what is meant.

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Verbal Irony

Back 35

A form of irony in which the speaker is aware of the discrepancy between what he/she says and what is meant.

Front 36

Situational Irony

Back 36

A form of irony in which there is a discrepancy between an outcome or condition and that which would be expected.

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Juxtaposition

Back 37

A synonym for the word contrast.

Front 38

Litotes

Back 38

A form of understatement where something is affirmed by stating the negative of its opposite.

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Motif

Back 39

A recurring and symbolically significant element - for example, a word, phrase, pattern, name, image, or idea - in a literary work.

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Neoligism (Coined word)

Back 40

A word that a writer invents or one that he forms by combining existing words, or a word used out of its ordinary context.

Front 41

Objective tone

Back 41

Writing in which one aims to appearing neutral or impartial, through logic, literalness, and clarity.

Front 42

Organization - Cause-effect order

Back 42

Exposition arranged according to awareness of the action-reaction between ideas and/or events.

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Organization - Chronological order

Back 43

Exposition arranged according to a sense of ordinary time sequence.

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Organization - Climactic order

Back 44

Exposition arranged according to the placement of details in rising order of importance.

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Organization - Comparison / Contrast order

Back 45

Exposition arranged according to an analysis of the similarities and/or differences between related elements.

Front 46

Spatial order

Back 46

Exposition arranged according to an awareness of the relationships between objects in the visual field.

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Oxymoron

Back 47

A contradictory phrase, usually in the form of an adjective followed by what would appear to be the mismatch of a noun. (Condensed paradox)

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Paradox

Back 48

A form of verbal irony, taking the form of a self-contradictory statement.

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Parallel structure

Back 49

Arranging the parts of a composition - words, sentences, phrases, paragraphs, and larger organizational units - in orders that are similar.

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Paraphrase

Back 50

A rewording of the thought or meaning expressed in a literary work.

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Persona

Back 51

The personality or voice assumed by the writer in the composition of an imaginitive or fictive work.

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Prose

Back 52

A general term to describe writing that is not poetic.

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Pun

Back 53

A rhetorical device that depends for its effect on multiple meanings of certain words.

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Rhetoric

Back 54

The art of verbal expression.

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Rhetorical Question

Back 55

A question that is not followed by nor inviting a reply.

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Satire

Back 56

A form of writing (in either narrative or non-narrative forms) in which the writer holds up to ridicule and contempt the weaknesses and wrongdoings of individuals, groups, institutions, or humanity in general.

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Style

Back 57

The general texture of a work or a writer's distinctive voice—the way that he expresses ideas by the use of diction, tone, figurative language, etc.

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Subjective Tone

Back 58

A term describing writing in which the writer expresses personal beliefs or thoughts.

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Syntax

Back 59

The ordering of sequences of words into phrases, clauses, and sentences.

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Loose sentence

Back 60

The main idea comes first then the details are added.

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Periodic sentence

Back 61

The main idea is delayed until the end of the sentence, which follows the minor details.

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Parallel sentence

Back 62

The the items in a series are put into the same grammatical form.

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Balanced sentence

Back 63

Two complimentary or congruent ideas are expressed in perfect parallelism. (semi-colon)

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Antithetical sentence

Back 64

Two opposite ideas are set in strong contrast to each other.

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Inverted Sentence

Back 65

The usual subject-verb order of the sentence is reversed to the less common verb-subject order.

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Thesis

Back 66

The controlling idea of a non-fiction prose work.

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Tone

Back 67

The implied attitude of the writer or persona toward his subject matter or audience.

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Topic

Back 68

The subject of a work.

Front 69

Topic sentence

Back 69

A sentence that contains the main idea of the paragraph in which it appears.

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Transitions

Back 70

Words, phrases, sentences, sometimes paragraphs that relate ideas in a sequence to each other.

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Understatement

Back 71

A form of irony (usually verbal irony) in which an image or idea is given emphasis by having less importance attached to it than we might normally expect.

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Unity

Back 72

A principle of writing founded on the idea that each part of a work should relate to a single purpose.