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AP Lang
rhetorical terms
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| Allegory | a literary work in which characters, objects, or actions represent abstractions. |
| Anadiplosis | the repetition of the last word of the preceding clause. The word is used at the end of a sentence and again at the beginning of the next sentence. |
| Anaphora | a type of parallelism, repetition of the same word or a group of words at the beginning of successive clauses. |
| Anecdote | a brief narrative that focuses on a particular incident or event |
| Antecedent | the word, phrase, or clause referred to by a pronoun |
| Antimetabole | the repetition of words in an inverted order to sharpen a contrast |
| Antithesis | a statement in which two opposing ideas are balanced |
| Aphorism | a concise statement that expresses a general truth or a moral principle (an aphorism can be a memorable summation of the author's point: "What we obtain too cheap, we esteem too lightly") |
| Apostrophe | a figure of speech that directly addresses an absent or imaginary person or a personified abstraction, such as liberty or love. It is an address to someone or something that cannot answer. The effect may add familiarity or emotional intensity. |
| Appositive | a noun, phrase or clause which follows a noun or pronoun and renames or describes the noun or pronoun |
| Asyndeton | deliberately leaving our conjunctions between words, phrases, clauses. Remember the conjunctions with acronym FANBOYS: for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so. |
| Charactonym | a name that suggests the personality traits of a fictional character |
| Chiasmus | a statement consisting of two parallel parts in which the second part is structurally reversed |
| Clause | a grammatical unit that contains both a subject and a verb. An independent, or main, clause expresses a complete thought and can stand alone as a sentence. A dependent, or subordinate clause, cannot stand alone as a sentence and must be accompanied by an |
| Colloquial/ colloquialism | the use of slang or informal expression in speech or writing. Not generally acceptable for formal writing, colloquialisms give a work of conversational, familiar tone. |
| Complex Sentence | a sentence with one independent and at least one dependent clause |
| Compound Sentence | a sentence with two or more coordinate independent clauses, often joined by one or more conjunctions |
| Compound-complex sentence | a sentence with two or more principal clauses and one or more subordinate clauses |
| Concrete details | details that relate to or describe actual, specific things or events |
| Connotation | the non-literal, associative meaning of a word; the implied, suggested meaning. connotations may involve ideas, emotions, or attitudes |
| Cumulative sentence (loose sentence) | a sentence in which the main independent clause is elaborated by the successive addition of modifying clauses or phrases |
| Deductive reasoning | reasoning in which a conclusion is reached by stating a general principle and then applying that principle to a specific case |
| Denotation | the strict, literal, dictionary definition of the word, devoid of emotion, attitude, or color |
| Dialect | a variety of speech characterized by its own particular grammar or pronunciation, often associated with a geographical region |
| Diction | the word choices made by a writer |
| Ellipsis | the omission of a word or phrase which is grammatically necessary but can be deducted from the context |
| Epistrophe | repetition at the end of successive clauses, the opposite of anaphors |
| Epizuexis | a rhetorical expression where a word is repeated for emphasis, with no other words between |
| Ethos | the persuasive appeal or one's character, or credibility |
| Euphemism | an indirect, less offensive substitute for a generally unpleasant word or concept |
| Genre | the major category into which a literary work fits |
| Idiom | an expression in a given language that cannot be understood from the literal meaning of the words in the expression; or, a regional speech or dialect |
| Implication | a suggestion the writer or speaker makes (implies) without stating it directly. (note: the writer/speaker implies, the reader infers) |
| Inductive reasoning | deriving general principles from particular facts or instances |
| Inverted syntax/inversion | a sentence where the predicate comes before the subject |
| Irony/ironic | the contrast between what is stated explicitly and what is really meant, or the difference between what appears to be and what is actually true |
| Litotes | a form of understatement that involves making an affirmative point by denying its opposite. Litote is the opposite of hyperbole. |
| Logos | appeal to reason or logic, facts, statistics, etc. |
| Loose Sentences | a type of sentence in which the main idea (independent clause) comes first, followed by dependent grammatical units such as phrases and clauses. If a period were placed at the end of the independent clause, the clause would be a complete sentence. Work co |
| Metonymy | a figure of speech in which the name of one object is substituted for that of another closely associated with it |
| Oxymoron | from the Greek for "pointedly foolish," it is a figure of speech wherein the author groups apparently contradictory terms to suggest a paradox |
| Paradox | a statement that appears to be self-contradictory or opposed to common sense but upon closer inspection contains some degree of the truth or validity |
| Parallelism | also referred to as parallel construction or parallel structure, this refers to the grammatical or rhetorical framing of words, phrases, sentences, or paragraphs to give structural similarity |
| Pathos | the quality in a work that prompts the reader to feel pity, appeal to emotion |
| Periodic Sentence | a sentence that presents its central meaning in a main clause at the end. This independent clause is preceded by a phrase or clause that cannot stand alone. The effect of a periodic sentence is to add emphasis and structural variety |
| Polysyndeton | deliberately using a series of conjunctions |
| Rhetoric | the art of presenting ideas in a clear, effective and persuasive manner |
| Rhetorical devices | literary techniques used to heighten the effectiveness of expression |
| Rhetorical pattern | format or structure followed by a writer such as comparison/contrast or process analysis |
| Satire | the use of humor to emphasis human weakness or imperfection |
| Sententia | quoting a maxim or wise saying to apply a general truth to a situation |
| Style | the choices a writer makes; the combination of distinctive features of a literary work (when analyzing style, one considers diction, figurative language, sentence structure, etc.) |
| Subordinate Clause | contains both a subject and a verb, but unlike the independent clause, it cannot stand alone; it does not express a complete thought. Also called a dependent clause, it depends on a main clause (indep.) to complete its meaning. Usually begin with: althoug |
| Synecdoche | a part of something is used to represent the whole or, occasionally, the whole is used to represent a part |
| Syntax | the way an author chooses to arrange words into phrases, clauses, and sentences |
| Synesthesia | describing one kind of sensation in terms of another |
| Tautology | needless repetition which adds no meaning or understanding |
| Understatement | the ironic minimizing of fact, presenting something as less significant than it is. It is the opposite of hyperbole. |
| Unreliable Narrator | an untrustworthy or naive commentator on events and characters in a story |
| Zeugma | a construction in which one word (usually a verb) modifies or- often in different ways- two or more words in a sentence |
Created by:
brockmankelsey
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