A | B |
plot | the story line |
setting | time and place in a story |
theme | central message of a work |
style | writers way of writing |
point of view | perspective from which the story is told (1st, 2nd, 3rd person) |
symbolism | uses something to represent something else |
foreshadowing | giving clues to suggest events that have yet to occur |
mood | feeling created (in the reader) by a work |
irony | contrast between what is stated and what is meant |
simile | making comparisons between two subjects using like or as |
metaphor | one thing is spoken of as if it were something else |
personification | a non-human subject is given human traits |
alliteration | repetition of first sound (Peter Piper picked) - repeated at least two times |
allusion | a reference to a well-known person, place, event, or literary work to make the writing stronger |
stanza | groups of lines in a poem - paragraphs, stanzas |
imagery | descriptive or figurative language used to create word pictures for the reader |
flashback | a section in a literary work that interrupts the chronological order of events to relate an event from an earlier time. (goes back in time) |
protagonist | the good main character |
ASSONANCE | "cry" "side" "mine" "type" |
CONSONANCE | "...a murmuring of immemorial elms..." |
ONOMATOPOEIA | "buzz" "bang" "hiss" "splash" |
OXYMORON | "sweet sorrow" "cold fire" |
PARADOX | "Much madness is divinest sense." |
PERSONIFICATION | "The train wailed in the night." |
PUN | Mercutio with his dying breath: "Look for me tomorrow and you will find me a grave man." |
setting | time and place |
plot | events in a story |
climax | point of greatest emotion in story |
pun | play on words |
allusion | making reference to another work of art |
foreshadowing | hints of things to come |
flashback | interrupts chronological plot |
theme | author's message |
tone | author's attitude |
point of view | 1st, 3rd limited, 3rd omniscient |
character | person or animal that takes part in a literary work |
dynamic | a character who changes |
static | a character who does not change |
dialogue | conversation of two |
monologue | conversation |
soliloquy | long speech by a character who is alone |
exposition | background;intro of characters |
resolution | outcome, result |
flashback | interruption of action to go to past |
connotation | the implied or suggested meaning of word or phrase apart from the explicit meaning |
denotation | the literal meaning or dictionary definition of a word |
figurative language | language enriched by word images and figures of speech |
assonance | the repetition of a vowel sound in words |
consonance | the repetition of final consonant sounds |
alliteration | the repetition of the beginning sounds of two or more neighboring words |
literary | being able to communicate effectively by reading and writing |
adjective | word that describes somebody or something. |
adverb | a word that modifies a verb, adjective, or another adverb. It tells "how, when, where, why, how often, and how much." There are 4 classifications: time, place, manner, and degree. |
gerund | verb form that ends in -ing and is used as a noun. |
SEMICOLON | USED TO SEPARATE TWO INDEPENDANT CLAUSES THAT ARE RELATED. |
PERIOD | USED AT THE END OF A SENTENCE |
COLON | OFTEN USED BEFORE A LIST |
QUOTATION MARKS | USED AT THE BEGINNING AND END OF A QUOTE |
noun | A word that names a person, place, thing, or idea. |
common noun | A word that names an ordinary noun. |
proper noun | A word that names a specific noun. |
pronoun | A word that takes the place of a noun. |
adjective | A word that modifies (describes) a noun or pronoun. |
proper adjective | A word formed from a proper noun. |
adverb | A word that modifies (describes) a verb, adjective, or adverb. |
verb | A word that shows action or state of being. |
helping verb | A word that helps the main verb. |
linking verb | A word that links the subject to a noun, pronoun, or adjective in the predicate. |
preposition | A word that shows the relationship of a noun or pronoun to another word in the sentence. |
conjunction | A word that joins words or groups of words. |
article | The adjectives A, AN, THE. |
interjection | An exclamatory word that expresses emotion. It stands alone - away from the rest of the sentence. |
adjective | Answers the questions: What kind? Which one? How many? |
adverb | Answers the questions: How? When? Where? To what degree or extent? |
plot | the story line |
setting | time and place in a story |
characterization | personality trait of characters |
theme | central message of a work |
style | writers way of writing |
point of view | perspective from which the story is told (1st, 2nd, 3rd person) |
symbolism | uses something to represent something else |
foreshadowing | giving clues to suggest events that have yet to occur |
mood | feeling created (in the reader) by a work |
irony | contrast between what is stated and what is meant |
satire | writing that ridicules or criticizes individuals, ideas, social convention |
simile | making comparisons between two subjects using like or as |
metaphor | one thing is spoken of as if it were something else |
personification | a non-human subject is given human traits |
alliteration | repetition of first sound (Peter Piper picked) - repeated at least two times |
allusion | a reference to a well-known person, place, event, or literary work to make the writing stronger |
inference | a guess of what can be |
stanza | groups of lines in a poem - paragraphs, stanzas |
rhyme scheme | the regular pattern of rhyming words in a poem |
imagery | descriptive or figurative language used to create word pictures for the reader |
flashback | a section in a literary work that interrupts the chronological order of events to relate an event from an earlier time. (goes back in time) |
protagonist | the good main character |
antagonist | the bad main character |
dynamic character | the character that changes (Scrooge) |
static character | the character that does not change |
setting | time and place |
protagonist | main character with problem |
antagonist | protagonist's problem |
plot | events in a story |
climax | point of greatest emotion in story |
denouement | conclusion,resolution |
rising action | complications |
exposition | beginning of plot |
irony | opposite happens of what is expected |
pun | play on words |
allusion | making reference to another work of art |
tone | author's attitude |
allusion | reference to a person, literary work, or work of art |
dialogue | conversation of two |
monologue | conversation |
soliloquy | long speech by a character who is alone |
dramatic irony | contradiction between what a character thinks and what the audience knows |
theme | central message, purpose, or concern of a literary work |
Personification | giving an inanimate object human-like characteristics |
connotation | the implied or suggested meaning of word or phrase apart from the explicit meaning |
denotation | the literal meaning or dictionary definition of a word |
figurative language | language enriched by word images and figures of speech |
metaphor | a figure of speech that makes an implied comparison |
mood | emotional state expressed in a literary work |
onomatopoeia | a figure of speech in which the sound of a word reflects its sense or meaning |
Allusion | reference to a well-known person, place, event, literary work, or work of art. |
characterization | the act of creating and developing a character |
direct characterization | the author directly states a character's traits |
indirect characterization | an author tells what a character looks like, does, and says, and how other characters react to him |
round character | shows many different traits--faults as well as virtues |
flat character | we see only one side of a character |
dynamic character | develops and grows during the course of the story |
static character | does not change or grow |
external conflict | main character struggles against and outside force |
internal conflict | involves a character in conflict with himself or herself |
connotation | the set of ideas associeated with a word in addition to its explicit meaning |
couplet | a pair of rhyming lines usually of the sme lenght and meter |
genre | category or type of literature |
haiku | a three-line verse form. 5-7-5 syllables |
imagery | the descriptive or figurative language used in literature to create word pictures for the reader |
prose | the ordinary form of written language |
quatrain | a stanza or poem made up of four lines, usually with a definite rhythm and rhyme scheme |
rhyme | the repetition of sounds at the ends of words |
rhyme scheme | a regular pattern of rhyming words in a poem |
rhythm | the patter of beats, or stresses, in spoken or written language |
science fiction | writing that tells about imagninary events that involve science or technology |
setting | the timeand place of the action |
short story | a brief work of fiction |
simile | a figure of speech in which like or as is used to make a comparison between two basically unlike ideas |
soliloquy | a long speech expressing the thoughts of a character alone on stage |
sonnet | a fourteen-line lyric poem, usually written in rhymed iambic pentameter |
stanza | a formal division of lines ina poem, considered as a unit |
tone | the writer's attitude toward his or her audience and subject of a literary work |
tragedy | a work of literature, especially a play, that results in a catastrophe for the main character |
Narrative Poem | A verse that tells a story |
Sonnet | A fourteen line poem that follows one of a number of different rhyme themes |
Free Verse | Poetry that avoids use of regular rhyme, rhythm, meter, or division into stanzas |
Lyric Poem | A highly musical verse that expresses the emotions of a speaker |
rose | past tense of rise |
raised | past tense of raise |
have lain | past participle of lie |
have laid | past particple of lay |
have risen | past particple of rise |
semicolon | used like a period |
apostrophe | used to show possession |
colon | used before a list |
alliteration | pink panther |
assonance | how now |
simile | You are as angry as a bee. |
onomatopoeia | The crackling fire was cozy. |
metaphor | You are the sunshine of my life. |
resolution | outcome, result |
dynamic character | develops and grows during the course of the story |
static character | does not change or grow |
climax | the high point of interest or supsense in a story, novel, or play |
conflict | a sturggle between opposing forces |
external conflict | main character struggles against and outside force |
internal conflict | involves a character in conflict with himself or herself |
connotation | the set of ideas associeated with a word in addition to its explicit meaning |
couplet | a pair of rhyming lines usually of the sme lenght and meter |
denotation | a words dictionary meaning, independent of other associations that the word may have |
dialcect | from of language spoken by people in a particular region or group |
dialogue | a conversaation between characters |
diction | word choice |
drama | a story written to be performed by actors |
dramatic poetry | poetry that utilizes the techniques of drama |
epic | a long narrative poem about the deeds of gods or heroes |
epic simile (Homeric simile) | an elaborate comparison of unlike subjects |
essay | a short nonfiction work about a particular subject |
exposition | the part of the work that introduces the cahracters, the setting, and the basic situation |
fantasy | a highly imaginative writing that contains elements not found in real life |
fiction | prose writing that tells about imagninary charactes and events |
figurative language | writing or speech not meant to be interpreted literally |
foreshadowing | the use in a literary work of clues that suggest events that have yet to occur |
free verse | poetry not written in a regular rhythmical pattern, or meter |
genre | category or type of literature |
haiku | a three-line verse form. 5-7-5 syllables |
image | a word or phrase that appeals to one or more of the five senses |
imagery | the descriptive or figurative language used in literature to create word pictures for the reader |
verbal irony | words are used to suggest the opposite of what is meant |
dramatic irony | there is a contradiction between what a character thinks and what the reader or audience knows to be true |
irony of situation | an event occurs that directly contradicts the expectations of the characters |
lyric poem | a highly musical verse that expresses the observations and feelings of a single speaker |
metaphor | a figure of speech in which one thing is spoken of as though it were something else |
meter | a poem's rhythmical patter |
monologue | a speech by one character in a play, story, or poem |
mood | the feeling created in the reader by a literary work or passage |
myth | a fictional tale that explains the actions of gods or the causes of natural phenomena |
narration | writing that tells a story |
narrative | a story told in fiction, nonfiction, poetry, or drama |
narrative poem | a poem that tells a story |
narrator | a speaker or character who tells a story |
nonfiction | prose writing that presents and explains ideas or that tells about real people, places, objects, or events |
novel | a long work of fiction |
onomatopoeia | the use of words that imitate sounds |
personification | a type of figurative language in which a nonhuman subject is given human characteristics |
persuasion | writing or speech that attempts to convice the reader to adopt a particular opinion or course of action |
plot | the sequence of events in a literary work |
poetry | one of the three major types of literature, the others being prose and drama |
prose | the ordinary form of written language |
quatrain | a stanza or poem made up of four lines, usually with a definite rhythm and rhyme scheme |
repetition | the use of any element of language--a sound, a word, a phrase, a clause, or a sentence--more than once |
rhyme | the repetition of sounds at the ends of words |
rhyme scheme | a regular pattern of rhyming words in a poem |
rhythm | the patter of beats, or stresses, in spoken or written language |
science fiction | writing that tells about imagninary events that involve science or technology |
setting | the timeand place of the action |
short story | a brief work of fiction |
simile | a figure of speech in which like or as is used to make a comparison between two basically unlike ideas |
soliloquy | a long speech expressing the thoughts of a character alone on stage |
sonnet | a fourteen-line lyric poem, usually written in rhymed iambic pentameter |
tone | the writer's attitude toward his or her audience and subject of a literary work |
tragedy | a work of literature, especially a play, that results in a catastrophe for the main character |
exaggeration | stretching of the truth |
action verb | a word that shows action |
adjective | describes a noun or a pronoun |
adverb | describes a verb, an adjective or another adverb |
anecdote | a short story about someone |
antonyms | opposite words |
character | a person, animal, or creature in a story |
conjunction | a word that joins other words |
context clue | helps a reader find the meaning of an unkown word |
future tense | shows an action that will happen in the future |
haiku | a Japanese verse form |
interjection | expresses strong feeling or emotion |
interrogative sentence | asks a question |
linking verb | connects the subject and the predicate |
main verb | most important word in the predicate |
metaphor | compares two things by saying one thing is the other |
noun | a person, a place, a thing or an idea |
part of speech | tells how a word is used in a sentence |
plot | series of events in a story itne order in which they happen |
plural noun | more than one person, place, or thing |
possessive noun | shows ownership |
posseive pronoun | my, your, his, her, its, our, and their |
preposition | relates the noun or pronoun to another word in the sentence |
pronoun | a word that takes the place of a noun |
proper noun | names a particular person, place, or thing |
alliteration | repetition of an initial consonant sound |
personification | giving life to inanimate objects |
onomatopoeia | words that sound like what they mean |
apostrophe | a direct address to a person or thing as if it were alive and present |
simile | comparing two dissimilar objects using like or as |
metaphor | an implied comparison between two dissimilar things whereby one object becomes the other |
hyperbole | an exaggeration |
irony | when the outcome is the opposite of what is expected |
oxymoron | a contradiction of terms |
synedoche | part for the whole |
alliteration | Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers. |
literal language | means exactly what it says |
metaphor | Your eyes are diamonds. |
simile | Your eyes are like diamonds. |
hyperbole | There were a thousand people at my party. |
comma | punctuation mark used to separate items in a series |
denotation | dictionary definition |
metaphor | You are the light of my life. |
simile | You're as ugly as roadkill. |
oxymoron | Brawling Love |
anecdote | a short story about a funny event |
allusion | reference to something outside the work usually mythical, biblical, etc. |
GRAVE | SOMBER OR SOLEMN; DANGEROUS |
ECSTATIC | EXTREMELY JOYFUL |
EMPATHETIC | EXHIBITIN AN UNDERSTANDING OF OTHERS FEELINGS |
SERENE | CALM AND UNRUFFLED |
TAUNTING | JEERING; TORMENTING |
CHERISH | TO HOLD DEAR |
RESOLUTION | WHEN ALL THE LOOSE ENDS ARE TIED UP |
FALLING ACTION | EVENTS THAT OCCUR AFTER THE CLIMAX |
CLIMAX | POINT OF NO RETURN; POINT OF MOST INTENSE INTEREST |
RISING ACTION | ALL THE EVENTS THAT LEAD TO THE CLIMAX |
NARRATIVE HOOK | THE PART OF THE STORY THAT GRABS THE READER'S ATTENTION |
EXPOSITION | THE PART OF THE STORY THAT EXPLAINS THE BACKGROUND AND MAKES CONFLICT CLEAR |
PLOT | THE SEQUENCE OF EVENTS IN A STORY |
NOVEL | A LONG WORK OF NARRATIVE PROSE FICTION |
ANECDOTE | SHORT SUMMARY OF A FUNNY EVENT |
ARCHETYPE | A REPEATING PATTERN OR FORM IN LITERATURE |
BALLAD | A SONG ABOUT SOMEONE FROM THE PAST |
CLICHE | AN OVERUSED WORD OR PHRASE |
DIALOGUE | CONVERSATION BETWEEN 2 OR MORE CHARACTERS |
SYMBOL | SOMETHING SEEN THAT STANDS FOR SOMETHING UNSEEN |
FICTION | STORIES ABOUT IMAGINARY PEOPLE, PLACES, AND EVENTS |
FREE VERSE | POETRY WITHOUT A REGULAR PATTERN OF RHYTHM OR RHYME |
LYRIC POETRY | SHORT POETRY, USUALLY ABOUT AN EMOTION, AND ONLY HAS ONE SPEAKER |
Mood | the feeling or atmosphere that the writer creates for the reader |
FICKLE | CHANGEABLE |
elusive | hard to pin down |
conflagration | a large fire |
bellicose | aggressive |
morose | gloomy |
nettle | to annoy |
bemoan | to complain about |
surreptitious | sneaky |
perpetuated | caused to continue |
nefarious | wicked, immoral |
pseudonym | an author's assumed name |
conundrum | an enigma; a puzzle |
FICKLE | CHANGEABLE |
VERSE | THE OPPOSITE OF PROSE; POETRY |
PARADOX | A STATEMENT THAT SEEMS TO BE CONTRADICTORY BUT ACTUALLY PRESENTS A TRUTH |
THEY HAVE EARS BUT HEAR NOT. | PARADOX |
ALLUSION | A REFERENCE TO SOMETHING OUTSIDE THE WORK; USUALLY MYTHICAL, BIBLICAL OR HISTORICAL |
FOIL | A CHARACTER WHO HELPS EMPHASIZE THE TRAITS OF ANOTHER CHARACTER THROUGH CONTRAST |
SYMPATHETIC | COMPREHENDING THE NEEDS AND FEELINGS OF OTHERS |
FACETIOUS | LACKING SERIOUS INTENT; NOT MEANT TO BE TAKEN SERIOUSLY |
OBJECTIVE | NOT INFLUENCED BY PERSONAL FEELINGS; BASED ON FACTS |
CONTEMPTUOUS | SHOWING OR EXPRESSING CONTEMPT OR DISDAIN |
PORTENTOUS | FOREBODING |
ADVERSARY | A FOE, AN ENEMY |
CHASTE | DECENT; PURE |
PARALLELISM | REPETITION OF GRAMMATICAL STRUCTURE |
PROSE | OPPOSITE OF POETRY; WRITING IN SENTENCES |
ANECDOTE | SHORT SUMMARY OF A FUNNY EVENT |
ARCHETYPE | A REPEATING PATTERN OR FORM IN LITERATURE |
BALLAD | A SONG ABOUT SOMEONE FROM THE PAST |
CLICHE | AN OVERUSED WORD OR PHRASE |
DIALOGUE | CONVERSATION BETWEEN 2 OR MORE CHARACTERS |
FICTION | STORIES ABOUT IMAGINARY PEOPLE, PLACES, AND EVENTS |
FREE VERSE | POETRY WITHOUT A REGULAR PATTERN OF RHYTHM OR RHYME |
LYRIC POETRY | SHORT POETRY, USUALLY ABOUT AN EMOTION, AND ONLY HAS ONE SPEAKER |
CYNICAL | PESSIMISTIC; SKEPTICAL |
APATHETIC | INDIFFERENT; UNCONCERNED |
DEFIANT | DISOBEDIENT |
WITTY | FUNNY AND CLEVER |
DIPLOMATIC | TACTFUL; SKILL IN DEALING WITH OTHERS |
PENSIVE | THOUGHTFUL; WORRIED |
irony | contrast between what is stated and what is meant |
couplet | a pair of rhyming lines usually of the same length and meter |
sonnet | a fourteen-line lyric poem, usually written in rhymed iambic pentameter |
DISDAIN | TO REJECT AS BENEATH ONESELF |
POINT OF VIEW | THE PERSPECTIVE FROM WHICH A STORY IS TOLD |
FIRST PERSON | CHARACTERIZED BY THE PRONOUN "I" |
THIRD PERSON | TOLD FROM THE PERSPECTIVE OF SOMEONE OUTSIDE THE STROY WHO KNOES THE THOUGHTS AND FEELINGS OF A SINGLE CHARACTER IN THE STORY |
OMNISCIENT | TOLD FROM THE PERSPECTIVE OF SOMEONE OUTSIDE THE STORY WHO KNOWS THE THOUGHTS AND FEELINGS OF ALL THE CHARACTERS |
HAMPER | TO HINDER OR OBSTRUCT |
PLACID | CALM; SERENE |
ABRASIVE | COARSE; ROUGH |
COVERT | HIDDEN |
COWER | TO RECOIL IN FEAR |
CREDIBLE | BELIEVABLE |
REPREHENSIBLE | SHAMEFUL |
BLATANT | OBVIOUS |
BLATANT | I COULD NOT BELIEVE THE ___ LIES SHE TOLD! |
REPREHENSIBLE | SHE WAS EMBARRASSED BY HER SON'S _____ BEHAVIOR. |
DISDAIN | CANDICE LOOKED AT THE OTHER GIRL'S CLOTHING WITH ____. |
COWERED | FRIGHTENED BY THE ANGRY, HISSING CAT, THE PUPPY ______ UNDERNEATH THE BED. |
CREDIBLE | THE ATTORNEY THOUGHT THAT BOB WOULD MAKE A BELIEVABLE, ______ WITNESS. |
PLACID | THE ____ EXPRESSION ON HER FACE HID HER INNER TURMOIL. |
ABRASIVE | HIS _____ MANNER DID NOT ENDEAR HIM TO HIS PATIENTS; THEY THOUGHT HE WAS TOO HARSH. |
COVERT | THE AGENTS WERE SENT OUT ON A ____ OPERATION. |
HAMPER | THE INVESTIGATION WAS _____(ED) BY CRIME SCENE CONTAMINATION. |
VICARIOUS | FELT OR UNDERGONE AS IF ONE WERE TAKING PART IN THE EXPERIENCE OF ANOTHER |
VICARIOUSLY | JOHN LIVED ____(LY) THROUGH THE ACTION MOVIES HE WATCHED. |
MANDATE | AN AUTHORITATIVE COMMAND |
MANDATED | IT WAS ___(ED) THAT BOB DO FORTY HOURS OF COMMUNITY SERVICE. |
ALTRUISM | SELFLESSNESS; UNSELFISH CONCERN FOR OTHERS |
ALTRUISM | THE WEALTHY MAN WAS KNOWN FOR HIS ____; HE WAS ALWAYS TRYING TO HELP THE LESS FORTUNATE. |
LACKADAISICAL | LACKING ENERGY |
LACKADAISICAL | THE ____ YOUNG MAN WAS TOO LAZY TO GET HIS OWN SODA. |
INEPT | CLUMSY |
INEPT | THE ___ REFEREE KEPT GETTING IN THE FORWARD'S WAY. |
FINESSE | SKILLFUL; TACTFUL, REFINEMENT AND DELICACY OF PERFORMANCE |
FINESSE | ERIC STAAL'S ___ ON THE ICE MAKES HIM A LEADING GOAL-SCORER. |
TENACIOUS | PERSISTANT |
TENACIOUS | THE ____ MAN WOULD NOT TAKE NO FOR AN ANSWER. |
ENIGMA | A RIDDLE |
ENIGMA | THE STRANGE LIGHTS IN THE SKY COULD NOT BE EXPLAINED; THEY WOULD REMAIN AN ______. |
ARCHAIC | OUTDATED |
ARCHAIC | THEY FOUND _____ REMNANTS OF AN ANCIENT CIVILZATION AS THEY WERE EXCAVATING THAT PLOT OF LAND. |
SACROSANCT | REGARDED AS SACRED |
SACROSANCT | IN EQUALITY'S SOCIETY, THE COLLECTIVE GOOD IS _____ AND INDIVIDUALITY IS A SIN. |
NEBULOUS | VAGUE; CLOUDY |
NEBULOUS | WE FOUND HER DIRECTIONS TO BE SO ____ THAT NO ONE WAS SURE OF WHAT TO DO. |
LOQUACIOUS | THE _____ GIRL WOULDN'T STOP TALKING! |
LOQUACIOUS | VERY TALKATIVE |
METONYMY | ONE WORD OR PHRASE IS SUBSTITED FOR ANOTHER WITH WHICH IT IS CLOSELY ASSOCIATED. |
METONYMY | WE RECEIVED ORDERS FROM WASHINGTON TO INVADE THE COMPOUND. |
SYNECDOCHE | A FIGURE OF SPEECH IN WHICH A PART STANDS FOR THE WHOLE |
SYNECDOCHE | HE ASKED FOR HER HAND IN MARRIAGE. |
UTOPIA | AN IDEALLY PERFECT PLACE |
UTOPIA | MY ____ IS A WORLD WHERE EVERYONE IS HAPPY AND CONTENT. |
DYSTOPIA | A PLACE IN WHICH THE CONDITIONS ARE EXTREMELY BAD |
DYSTOPIA | WHILE MARX'S IDEAS SOUNDED GOOD, THEY FORMED A ______ IN WHICH MANY PEOPLE WERE DEPRIVED OF BASIC NECESSITIES AND HAPPINESS. |