 | Term | Definition |
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allusion |
An instance of indirect reference |
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ambiguity |
The quality or state of being ambiguous; doubtfulness or uncertainty, particularly as to the signification of language, arising from its admitting of more than one meaning; an equivocal word or expression |
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analogy |
A resemblance of relations; an agreement or likeness between things in some circumstances or effects, when the things are otherwise entirely different |
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anaphora |
A repetition of a word or of words at the beginning of two or more successive clauses |
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antithesis |
The direct or exact opposite |
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apostrophe |
The direct address of an absent or imaginary person or of a personified abstraction, especially as a digression in the course of a speech or composition |
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attitude |
The posture, action, or disposition of a figure or a statue |
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detail |
To relate in particulars; to particularize; to report minutely and distinctly; to enumerate; to specify; as, he detailed all the facts in due order |
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diction |
Choice and use of words in speech or writing |
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ethos |
The disposition, character, or fundamental values peculiar to a specific person, people, culture, or movement |
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euphemism |
The act or an example of substituting a mild, indirect, or vague term for one considered harsh, blunt, or offensive |
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figure of speech |
An expression that uses language in a nonliteral way, such as a metaphor or synedoche, or in a structured or unusual way, such as anaphora or chiasmus, or that employs sounds, such as alliteration or assonance, to achieve a rhetorical effect. |
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hyperbole |
A figure of speech in which exaggeration is used for emphasis or effect |
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imagery |
The use of vivid or figurative language to represent objects, actions, or ideas |
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logos |
logic, reasoning |
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metaphor |
a figure of speech in which an expression is used to refer to something that it does not literally denote in order to suggest a similarity |
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mood |
Temper of mind; temporary state of the mind in regard to passion or feeling; humor; as, a melancholy mood; a suppliant mood |
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organization |
the arrangement of a work of literature |
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oxymoron |
conjoining contradictory terms |
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paradox |
a nonsensical underlying truth |
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pathos |
quality that arouses emotions (especially pity or sorrow); |
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perspective |
a way of regarding situations or topics |
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point of view |
A manner of viewing things; an attitude |
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repetition |
The act or process or an instance of repeating or being repeated |
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rhetorical question |
A question to which no answer is expected, often used for rhetorical effect |
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sentence structure |
the grammatical arrangement of words in sentences |
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simile |
a comparison using 'like' or 'as' |
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syntax |
That part of grammar which treats of the construction of sentences; the due arrangement of words in sentences in their necessary relations, according to established usage in any language |
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tone |
the quality of a person's voice |
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understatement |
a statement that is restrained in ironic contrast to what might have been said (used for irony) |
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Ad hominem |
'against the man' When a writer personally attacks his or her opponents instead of their arguments |
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Allegory |
A story, fictional or nonfictional, in which characters, things, and events represent qualities or concepts; they reveal an abstract truth |
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Anecdote |
A brief recounting of a relevant episode; usually inject humor or develop a point |
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Asyndeton |
Commas used with no conjunction |
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Begging the question |
often called circular reasoning, begging the question occurs when the believablity of the evidence depends on the believability of the claim |
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Didactic |
used to describe fiction or nonfiction that teaches a specific lesson or moral or provides a model of correct behavior or thinking |
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Elliptical |
Sentence structure which leaves out something in the second half. |
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Epigraph |
When a writer uses the same term in two different senses in an argument |
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Inversion |
subject first, then verb, then complement; the element that is first is emphasized |
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Freight-train |
sentence consisting of three or more very short independent clauses joined by conjunction |
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Non-sequiter |
When on statement isn't logically connected to another |
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Polysyndeton |
Sentence with uses 'and' or another conjunction without commas |
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Post hoc, ergo propter hoc |
When a writer implies that because one thing follow another, the first caused the second. But sequence is not cause. |
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Red herring |
When a writer raises an irrelevant issue to draw attention away from the real issue |
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Persona |
A writer oftens adopts a fictional voice (or mask) to tell a story. |
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Satire |
A work that reveals a critcial attitude toward some element of human behavior by portraying it in an extreme way. Satire targets groups rather than individuals |
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Straw Man |
When a writer argues against a claim that nobody actually holds or is universally considered weak. Setting up a straw man diverts attention from the real issue |
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Tricolon |
Sentence consisting of three parts of equal importance and length, usually three independent clauses |
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Syntactic Permutation |
Sentence structures that are extraordinarily complex and involved. Often difficult for a reader to follow |
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Aphorism |
A terse statement which expresses a general truth or moral principle. Can be a memorable summation of the author's point. |
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Connotation |
The nonliteral, associative meaning of a wrod; the implied suggested meaning |
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denotation |
the strict literal meaning ; devoid of any emotion , attitude or color |
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syllogism |
a deductive system of formal logic that presents two premises- first one a major and the second a minor |
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Periodic sentence |
A sentence that expresses the main thoughts at the END. OPPOSITE OF Loose Sentence |
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Loose Sentence |
Sentence of standard order : subject & verb |
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Expose |
Journalistic writing to expose weakness, faults or shortcomings |
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Abstract |
Brief synopsis of longer work of scholarship or research. (Book --> single page) |
