| Term | Definition |
|---|
| active voice | the action is performed by the subject of the sentence, not the object |
| abstract | thought of apart from concrete realities, specific objects, or actual instances |
| adjectives | The part of speech that modifies a noun or other substantive |
| adverbs | the part of speech that modifies a verb |
| allegory | a story or narrative, often told at some length, which has a deeper meaning below the surface |
| alliteration | the repetition of initial consonant sounds in a line or succeeding lines of verse |
| allusion | an indirect or oblique reference within a text to another text or work |
| ambiguity | The expression of an idea in such a way that more than one meaning is suggested |
| anecdote | A brief story used in an essay to illustrate a point |
| antagonist | The force or person working against the protagonist. e.g., the villian of the story |
| antecedent | The word for which the pronoun stands |
| antithesis | the second sentence or part thus set in opposition |
| aphorism | A brief, sometimes clever saying that expresses a principle, truth or observation about life |
| apostrophe | A literary device in which the speaker directly addresses someone dead, someone missing, an abstract quality, or something non human as if he/she/it were present |
| archetype | a model or first form |
| atmosphere | the prevailing mood created by a piece of writing |
| audience | the persons reached by a piece of theatrical or literary work |
| characterization | The process by which the writer reveals the personalities of the people of the work |
| characters | A fictional person portrayed in a piece of literary work |
| chiasmus | A crossing parallelism, where the second part of a grammatical construction is balanced or paralleled by the first part, only in reverse order |
| clause | a sentence construction containing a subject and predicate and forming part of a sentence or constituting a whole simple sentence |
| climax | the highest or most intense point in the development or resolution of something |
| colloquialism | pertaining to words or expressions more suitable for speech than writing |
| complex sentence | a sentence containing one or more dependent clauses in addition to the main clause |
| compound sentence | a sentence containing two or more coordinate independent clauses, usually joined by one or more conjunctions, but no dependent clause |
| conceit | an elaborate, extended, and sometimes surprising comparison between things that, at first sight, do not have much in common |
| conflict | The tension created in the story by the struggle or outcome of the struggle. One of the narrative devices to address when analyzing the tone of the passage |
| connotation | Words which have implied meaning, emphasizing the feelings or subjectivity that surrounds the word |
| dash | A punctuation device used to denote an abrupt break, pause in a sentence, or hesitation in an utterance |
| declarative sentence | a sentence (in the indicative mood) that makes a declaration |
| denotation | this type of word has a literal, dictionary meaning, emphasizing an objective tone |
| dialogue | conversation between two or more persons. |
| diction | Word choice used by the author to persuade or to convey tone, purpose, or effect |
| didactic | a type of writing that is preachy or bossy |
| duality | a dual state or quality |
| euphemism | The substitution of a mild or less negative word or phrase for a harsh or blunt one |
| exaggeration | the act of exaggerating or overstating |
| exclamatory sentence | A sentence that expresses strong feelings by making an exclamation |
| existentialism | A philosophy that emphasizes the uniqueness and isolation of the individual experience in a hostile or indifferent universe |
| extended metaphor | a metaphor that is extended through a stanza or entire poem |
| figurative language | speech or writing that departs from literal meaning in order to achieve a special effect or meaning |
| flashback | a device in the narrative of a motion picture, novel, etc., by which an event or scene taking place before the present time in the narrative is inserted into the chronological structure of the work. |
| foreshadowing | A literary technique in which the author gives hints about future events |
| genre | a collective grouping or general category of literary works |
| homily | a sermon, usually on a Biblical topic and usually of a nondoctrinal nature |
| hyperbole | A figure of speech in which the author over exaggerates to accomplish some purpose |
| imagery | Diction that describes the five senses |
| imperative sentence | A sentence that gives advice or instructions or that expresses a request or a command |
| inference | the act or process of inferring. |
| interrogative sentence | A sentence that questions |
| invective | the act or process of inferring. |
| inversion | Reversing the normal subject - verb - complement order |
| irony | A subtle form of sarcasm |
| juxtaposition | Placing two items side by side to create a certain effect, reveal an attitude, or accomplish a purpose |
| literal | true to fact; not exaggerated; actual or factual |
| litotes | understatement, esp. that in which an affirmative is expressed by the negative of its contrary |
| loose sentence | a sentence that is an understatement, esp. that in which an affirmative is expressed by the negative of its contrary |
| magical realism | a style of painting and literature in which fantastic or imaginary and often unsettling images or events are depicted in a sharply detailed, realistic manner. |
| metaphor | A direct comparison in which an unknown item is understood by directly comparing it to a known item |
| metonymy | a figure of speech that consists of the use of the name of one object or concept for that of another to which it is related |
| mood | a prevailing emotional tone or general attitude |
| monologue | a prolonged talk or discourse by a single speaker |
| motif | a recurring subject, theme, idea, etc., esp. in a literary, artistic, or musical work |
| narrative | a story or account of events, experiences, or the like, whether true or fictitious |
| onomatopoeia | Using a word that emits the sound of the word |
| oxymoron | A juxtaposition of two unlike things to create ambiguity through contradiction |
| paradox | A statement that seems contradictory, unbelievable, or absurd |
| parallelism/parallel structure | Recurrent syntactical similarity. In this structural arrangement several parts of a sentence or several sentences are developed and phrased similarly to show that the ideas in the parts or sentences are equal in importance. |
| parody | a literary or artistic work that mimics in an absurd of ridiculous way the conventions and style of another work |
| passive voice | the voice used to indicate that the grammatical subject of the verb is the recipient (not the source) of the action denoted by the verb |
| parenthesis | Used by the writer to whisper a witty aside to the reader |
| pedantic | overly concerned with minute details or formalisms, esp. in teaching. |
| periodic sentence | a sentence that, by leaving the completion of its main clause to the end, produces an effect of suspense |
| personification | Metaphorically represents an animal or inanimate object as having human attributes of form, character feelings, behavior, and so on |
| point of view | a specified or stated manner of consideration or appraisal; standpoint |
| pronouns | The part of speech that substitutes for nouns or noun phrases |
| protagonist | the main character or speaker in a poem, monologue, play, or story |
| pun | A play upon words based upon the multiple meanings of words |
| requiem | a song or hymn of mourning composed or performed as a memorial to a dead person |
| rhetorical question | A literary device in which a question is asked that actually requires no answer. |
| repetition | A device used by a writer to emphasize an important character trait, to reinforce a theme, to create parallel structure, to highlight the speaker's attitude, to provide a transition between paragraphs, to maintain an idea of persistence, or to focus the reader's attention on a person, place, thing, or idea |
| rhetoric | the undue use of exaggeration or display |
| rhetorical modes | based on the ways human brains process information |
| sarcasm | harsh or bitter derision or irony |
| satire | a genre or mode that exposes and ridicules human vice and folly |
| semantics | the study of meaning. |
| setting | The time and location of the story |
| shift | to move from one place, position, direction, etc., to another |
| simile | An indirect comparison using like or as. |
| simple sentence | a sentence having only one clause |
| soliloquy | an utterance or discourse by a person who is talking to himself or herself |
| subordinate clause | A dependent clause beginning with a subordinating conjunction |
| subplot | a secondary or subordinate plot, as in a play, novel, or other literary work; underplot |
| surrealism | A 20th-century literary and artistic movement that attempts to express the workings of the subconscious and is characterized by fantastic imagery and incongruous juxtaposition of subject matter. |
| symbolism | an object, sign, or image that is used to stand for something else, as a flag may be used to symbolize a nation |
| syntax | the study of the rules for the formation of grammatical sentences in a language |
| telegraphic sentence | a sentence that expresses a straightforward, no-frills idea or action |
| theme | a controlling idea or a subject for philosophical reflection in a literary work |
| tone | created through the combined efforts of a number of features |
| tragedy | drama or film portraying the doomed struggle and eventual downfall of an admirable but flawed hero |
| understatement | A statement that says less than what it means |
| universality | the character or state of being universal; existence or prevalence everywhere |
| verb | The part of speech that expresses existence, action, or occurrence in most languages |
| narrator | someone who tells a story |
Combine with other sets
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