English Vocab #2 &#3

Latin	English
Abstract	Conditions, qualities we cannot directly perceive: courage, love, evil.
Acerbic	Acid in temper, mood or tone.
Active Voice	The form of the verb when the sentence subject is the actor: Trees [subject] shed [verb] their leaves in autumn.
Allegory	A form of extended metaphor when characters in verse or prose personify abstract qualities; a symbolic narrative.
Alliteration	A poetic or literary effect achieved by using words that begin with the same or similar consonants.
Allusion	A reference to a noted personality, a famous event, story, song, painting, etc. believed to be common knowledge: The game was Coach Harbaugh's Waterloo.
Analogy	A similarity between like features of two things, on which a comparison may be based: Hope is the thing with feathers/ That perches in the soul.
Anecdote	A brief narrative, or retelling of a story or event.
Antithesis	A figure of speech in which sharply contrasting ideas are juxtaposed in a balanced or parallel phrase or grammatical structure, as in "Hee for God only, shee for God in him;" teh second and contrasting part of any juxtaposition; direct opposite.
Aphorism	A brief statement which expresses a wise observation about life: Our life is frittered away by detail...Simplify!
Appositive	An adjective or adjectival phrase directly following the noun it modifies: His car a perfectly maintained 1960 Thunderbird that was his pride and joy stood in the driveway.
Assertion	A declaration that is made emphatically (as if no supporting evidence were necessary). Something declared or stated positively, often with no support or attempt at proof.
Asyndeton	The omission of conjunctions in rhetoric: We shall pay any price, bear any burden, meet any hardships, support any friend, oppose any foe to assure the survival and the success of liberty.
Chauvinistic	Zealous and aggressive patriotism or blind enthusiasm for military glory; biased devotion to any group, attitude or cause; an attitude of superiority toward the opposite sex.
Churlish	Synonyms include coarse, uncouth, vulgar, loutish; ill-natured, uncivil.
Circumlocution	A roundabout or indirect way of speaking; the use of more words than necessary to express an idea.
Classicism	Aesthetic attitudes and principles manifested in the art, architecture, and literature of ancient Greece and Rome and characterized by emphasis on form, simplicity, proportion, and restraint.
Cliché	An expression used so often that its original power has been drained away: old as the hills.
Colloquial	Words and phrases occurring primarily in speech and in informal writing that seeks a relaxed, conversational tone: My favorite chow is a burger and a shake. Includes contractions and abbreviated words.
Conceit	An elaborate metaphor; fanciful idea; organizing theme.
Condescend	To deal with people in a patronizingly superior manner.
Connotation	The set of associations implied by a word in addition to its literal meaning.
Conundrum	A paradoxical, insoluble, or difficult problem; a dilemma.
Critique	A critical review or commentary, especially one dealing with works of art or literature.
Cynical	Believing or showing belief that people are motivated chiefly by base or selfish concerns; skeptical of the motives of others.
Denotation	The most specific or direct meaning of a word, in contrast to its figurative or associated meanings.
Desultory	Lacking in consistency, constancy, or visible order, disconnected; fitful; digressing from or unconnected with the main subject; random.
Dialect	Usually applies to the vocabulary, grammar, and pronunciation characteristic of specific geographic localities or social classes.
Diction	Refers chiefly to the choice of words, their arrangement, and the force, accuracy, and distinction with which they are used.
Double Entendre	A word or expression used in a given context so that it can be understood in two ways, esp. when one meaning is risqué.
Effusive	Unrestrained or excessive in emotional expression; gushy.
Epithets	A term used as a descriptive substitute for the name or title of a person, such as The Great Emancipator for Abraham Lincoln.
Erudite	Characterized by great knowledge; learned or scholarly.
Euphemism	An inoffensive or indirect expression that is substituted for one that is considered offensive or too harsh.
Expository	Serving to expound, set forth, or explain.
Fervent	Characterized by intense emotion; having or showing great emotion or zeal; ardent.
Folksy	Simple and unpretentious in behavior; characterized by informality and affability; modest; low-key.
Gerund	The English -ing form of a verb when functioning as a noun, as in 'We admired the choir's singing.'
Idiom	A speech form or an expression of a given language that is peculiar to itself grammatically or cannot be understood from the individual meanings of its elements, as in keep tabs on; a language, dialect or style of speaking peculiar to a people.
Infinitive	The simple or dictionary form of a verb: walk, think, fly, exist. Often the word to marks a verb as such: "to walk," 'to think," "to fly," "to exist."

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