Help
Options
Didn't know it?
click below
click below
Knew it?
click below
click below
Don't Know
Remaining cards (0)
Know
retry
shuffle
restart
0:00
Embed Code - If you would like this activity on your web page, copy the script below and paste it into your web page.
Normal Size Small Size show me how
Normal Size Small Size show me how
Literary Terms
Language Arts
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| alliteration | When two or more words in a group of words begin with the same sound (usually, the same letter or group of letters). For example: Anne’s awesome apple; Fred’s frozen french fries. |
| antagonist | The opponent or enemy of the main character.. |
| aside | Words spoken to the audience by a character in a drama that are not supposed to be heard by the other characters onstage. An aside is usually used to let the audience know what a character is thinking. |
| characterization | The means through which an author reveals a character’s personality. |
| direct characterization | the writer or a narrator tells the reader what the character is like: “Ben was a quiet, serious boy.” |
| indirect characterization, | the author shows the reader or audience member what the character is like through how the character looks, what the character does, what the character says, what the character thinks, and how the character affects other characters. |
| climax | The point in a play, novel, short story, or narrative poem at which the conflict reaches its greatest intensity and is then resolved. |
| conflict | A struggle between opposing forces. |
| dialogue | The conversation between characters in a work of literature. |
| dynamic character | A character who undergoes a significant internal change over the course of a story. This may be a change in understanding, values, insight, etc. |
| figurative language | The literal meaning of a word is its definition as you would find it in a dictionary. Language that uses words in some way other than for their literal meanings to make a comparison, add emphasis, or say something in a fresh and creative way. |
| flashback | A scene in a story that occurred before the present time in the story. Flashbacks provide background information about events happening during the current narration. They may be presented as memories, dreams, or stories of the past told by characters |
| foreshadowing | Clues or hints about something that is going to happen later in the story. |
| hyperbole | Extreme exaggeration used for emphasis or effect; an extravagant statement that is not meant to be taken literally. For example: “I almost died of boredom.” |
| idiom | An expression that cannot be understood from the meanings of its individual words. For example, “it’s raining cats and dogs”. |
| imagery | Language that portrays sensory experiences, or experiences of the five senses: sight, hearing, smell, taste, and touch. |
| situational irony | When the opposite of what is expected occurs. |
| dramatic irony | when the reader or audience member is aware of something that the characters are not aware of |
| verbal irony | when the name or description of something implies the opposite of the truth (for example, calling a very tall person “Tiny”). |
| major character | a character who playsa large role in a story. |
| metaphor | The comparison of two unlike things to illuminate a particular quality or aspect of one of those things. |
| minor character | A character who does not play a large role in a story. These characters usually do not face any obstacles during the course of the story, and they usually do not change during the course of the story. |
| mood | The feeling the reader gets from a work of literature. Another way to describe this in a story is atmosphere. When you walk into a place, it has an atmosphere that makes you feel a certain way; when you “walk into” a story, it too has an atmosphere. |
| onomatopoeia | The use of words whose sounds imitate the sounds of what they describe, such as hiss, murmur, growl, honk, buzz, woof, etc. |
| personification | Describing nonhuman animals, objects, or ideas as though they possess human qualities or emotions. For example: “The moon smiled down at her,” |
| plot | The sequence of events in a story |
| point of view | The perspective from which a story is told. In other words, who is telling the story—a character in the story or an outside narrator. |
| first-person point of view | Where the narrator is a character in the story who describes things from his or her own perspective and refers to himself or herself as “I”. |
| third-person limited point of view | Where the narrator is not a character in the story but the narrator can describe the experiences and thoughts of only one character in the story. |
| third-person omniscient point of view | Where the narrator is not one of the characters and is able to describe the experiences and thoughts of every character in the story. |
| protagonist | The main or central character of a work of literature. |
| setting | The environment in which a story takes place, including the time period, the location, and the physical characteristics of the surroundings. |
| simile | When two unlike things are compared—using like or as—in order to illuminate a particular quality or aspect of one of those things. |
| static character | A character who does not undergo a significant change over the course of a story. |
| onomatopoeia | The use of words whose sounds imitate the sounds of what they describe, such as hiss, murmur, growl, honk, buzz, woof, etc. |
| personification | Describing nonhuman animals, objects, or ideas as though they possess human qualities or emotions. For example: “The moon smiled down at her". |
| plot | The sequence of events in a story. |
| point of view | The perspective from which a story is told. In other words, who is telling the story—a character in the story or an outside narrator. |
| first-person point of view | Where the narrator is a character in the story who describes things from his or her own perspective and refers to himself or herself as “I”. |
| third-person limited point of view | Where the narrator is not a character in the story but the narrator can describe the experiences and thoughts of only one character in the story. |
| third-person omniscient point of view | Where the narrator is not one of the characters and is able to describe the experiences and thoughts of every character in the story. |
| protagonist | The main or central character of a work of literature. |
| setting | The environment in which a story takes place, including the time period, the location, and the physical characteristics of the surroundings. |
| simile | When two unlike things are compared—using like or as—in order to illuminate a particular quality or aspect of one of those things. |
| static character | A character who does not undergo a significant change over the course of a story. |
| symbol | An object, setting, event, animal, or person that on one level is itself, but that has another meaning as well. |
| symbolism | The practice of using symbols. |
| theme | A story’s main message or moral. |
| tone | The author’s attitude toward the subject matter or toward the reader or audience. |
Created by:
nbrown3
Popular English Vocabulary sets