Action word/ action verb: a verb that indicates action as opposed to showing a state of being
Adjective: part of speech-- a word that modifies a noun or pronoun
Adverb: part of speech—a word that modifies an adjective, verb or another adverb
Advertisement: a public announcement via the public media usually for the sale of goods or services
Allegory. A figurative work in which a surface narrative carries a secondary, symbolic or metaphorical meaning.
Alliteration: A poetic device (or rhetoric scheme) where the first consonant sounds or any vowel sounds in words or syllables are repeated.
Allusion: A reference to a familiar literary or historical person or event, used to make an idea more easily understood; Frequently indirect, often in the form of metaphor or simile, an allusion is a reference to a work of literature, art, history, or pop culture which the author intends for the reader to identify. The reader should recognize and apply the connotations implied by the original source. The importance of the allusion is not so much to identify the source as to magnify the pathos of the passage.
ie: from Perhaps This Time by Kendrick Harmon
"It was the only argument that could have worked. And so he did it. And there was no fanfare. And there was no ceremony. And there was no ceremony. And there was no parting speech. And there was no, "It is a far, far better rest I go to than I have ever known before." And the only people to see him leave were Kiriath and Hannaniah and the scientists. And she wept. And he struggled to hold back the tears. And the scientists did what they had to do. And he stepped through the portal.
And he was alone.
The allusion is the underlined quote. It is a line from A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens. I intend for my readers to recognize this line and remember the scene at the end of the novel. Sidney faces the guillotine in the place of Charles Darnay, allowing his doppleganger to escape to England with the woman both of them love. It is a moment of supreme sacrifice for the noblest of reasons. The pathos of the scene in my novel, consequently, is magnified when the emotional implications of the scene in the Dickens novel transfer using the technique, allusion.
Ambiguity: a word may have more than one meaning and the author does not indicate which one. (ie In John 21, Jesus asks Peter, "Lovest thou me more than these." This is an example of pronoun antecedent ambiguity. It is unclear what noun the word these refers to: these men? these things?)
Analogy: A comparison of two things made to explain something unfamiliar through its similarities to something familiar, or to prove one point based on the accepted-ness of another. Similes and metaphors are types of analogies.
Anecdote: A brief account of a particular incident
Antecedent: (literally to go before) A pronoun antecedent is the noun that the replaces
Apostrophe: the speaker addresses an inanimate object, an abstract idea, or a person who is absent or dead
ie. "O hateful Error, Melancholy's child,
Why dost thou show to the apt thoughts of men
The things that are not?" Julius Caesar V, iii, 67-69.
This is also an example of personification, Messala is talking to an abstract concept, Error, as though it is a person.
Archetype: The word archetype is commonly used to describe an original pattern or model from which all other things of the same kind are made. Archetypes are the literary images that grow out of the collective unconscious.
Assonance: The repetition of similar vowel sounds in Poetry
Assonance: Rhetoric Scheme--The repetition of similar vowel sounds followed by different consonant sounds in words that are close together
Atmosphere: The attitude created by the physical or emotional setting rather than the author’s mood or tone.
Autobiography: A written account of the author’s own life, usually a unified narrative prepared for a public audience.
Ballad: A song or song-like poem that tells a story; a short poem that tells a simple story and has a repeated refrain. Ballads were originally intended to be sung.
Blank Verse: Loosely, any unrhymed poetry, but more generally, unrhymed iambic pentameter verse (composed of lines of five two-syllable feet with the first syllable accented, the second unaccented).
Cadence: The natural rhythm of language caused by the alternation of accented and unaccented syllables. Much modern Poetry— notably free Verse — deliberately manipulates cadence to create complex rhythmic effects.
Characterization: A technique through which an author directly or indirectly presents the personality of his character
Clarification: a technique of commentary in which the writer rephrases an idea or provides additional information to make the idea more understandable.
Clarity: the overall style that is easily understood, as opposed to “muddy” convoluted
Climax: The turning point in a narrative, the moment when the conflict is at its most intense.
Colloquialism: A word, phrase, or form of pronunciation that is acceptable in casual conversation but not in formal, written communication.
Typically colloquialisms are expressions that are commonly associated with one region of the country.
(ie ya'll in Texas would be stated as you guys in some parts of the north and simply as you in many parts of the country.
Commentary: a form of elaboration, commentary includes inferences, opinions, and interpretations
Coming-of-age story. (Also known as Bildungsroman) A type of novel where the protagonist is initiated into adulthood through knowledge, experience, or both, often by a process of disillusionment. Understanding comes after the dropping of preconceptions, a destruction of a false sense of security, or in some way the loss of innocence.
Complex sentence: A sentence that has one independent clause and one or more dependent clauses.
Compound sentence: A sentence that has two or more independent clauses and no dependent clauses.
Comparative Adjective: modification of an adjective used when two people, things, or actions are compared
Conceit: A clever and fanciful metaphor, usually expressed through elaborate and extended comparison, which presents a striking parallel between two seemingly dissimilar things — for example, elaborately comparing a beautiful woman to an object like a garden or the sun.
Conclude: To bring to an end
Conclusion: the paragraph that completes an essay and reinforces its main idea
Concrete detail: the backbone of an essay, it includes specific events, quotes, or paraphrases
Confirm prediction: when reading, this is the last step in making predictions/ drawing conclusions
Conflict: A struggle or clash between opposing forces, ideas, or characters; The conflict in a work of fiction is the issue to be resolved in the story. It usually occurs between two characters, the protagonist and the antagonist, or between the protagonist and society or the protagonist and himself or herself.
Connotation (connotative meaning): meaning that comes from an attitudes or emotions attached to a word, figurative meanings, or multiple meanings
Conjunction: part of speech—a word or phrase that links words, phrases, clauses, or sentences
Couplet: Two lines of poetry with the same rhyme and meter, often expressing a complete and self-contained thought.
Debate: a regulated discussion of a proposition between two matched sides
Delivery: A manner or style of uttering a speech or song
Denotation (denotative meaning): The literal meaning of a word(dictionary definition); The definition of a word, apart from the impressions or feelings it creates in the reader.
Descriptive: writing that employs imagery to create a vivid picture of a person, an object, or a scene
Diagrams: A method by which the relationship of words within a sentence can be mapped visually
Dialect: Writing that attempts to imitate the sound and structure of a given region's use of langauge. It usually employs a phonetic spelling of words, in addition to use of colloquialisms and idioms.
(ie Crooks laughed again. "A guy can talk to you an' be sure you won't go blabbin'. Couple of weeks an' them pups'll be all right. George knows what he's about. Jus' talks, an' you don't understand nothing" (Steinbeck, Of Mice and Men, 70-71).
Dialogue: conversation between two or more people
Didactic: A term used to describe works of literature that aim to teach some moral, religious, political, or practical lesson.
Diction: The writer/speaker’s choice of words intended for a desired effect
Documentary films: A audio-visual presentation of nonfiction information
Dramatic Irony: Occurs when the audience of a play or the reader of a work of literature knows something that a character in the work itself does not know. The irony is in the contrast between the intended meaning of the statements or actions of a character and the additional information understood by the audience.
Drawing Conclusions: The act of making inferences based on facts or premises
Elaboration: The act of developing an idea in more depth and clarity
Elegy: A lyric poem that laments the death of a person or the eventual death of all people.
Epigram: A saying that makes the speaker's point quickly and concisely.
Epitaph: An inscription on a tomb or tombstone, or a verse written on the occasion of a person's death. Epitaphs may be serious or humorous.
Epithet: A word or phrase, often disparaging or abusive, that expresses a character trait of someone or something.
Essay: a short nonfiction work about a given subject
Euphemism: A phrase is used to replace a word or phrase. This may be done to replace an offensive word or phrase with one that is less offensive, (ie "He has passed away." or "He has obtained his final reward." rather than saying, "He died.") This is also done for humerous effect, (ie "He has kicked the bucket." or "He bought the farm.")
Exposition: Writing intended to explain the nature of an idea, thing, or theme. Expository writing is often combined with description, narration, or argument. In dramatic writing, the exposition is the introductory material which presents the characters, setting, and tone of the play.
Fable: A prose or verse narrative intended to convey a moral. Animals or inanimate objects with human characteristics often serve as characters in fables.
Fact: a statement that can be proven
Feelings: Emotional responses to stimuli
Fiction: a genre of literature that is based at least partially in the imagination
Figurative Language: Language that intentionally departs from the normal construction or meaning of words in order to create a certain effect or to make an analogy between two seemingly dissimilar things; the author temporarily interrupts the order, construction, or meaning of the writing for a particular effect.
Figure of Speech: Writing that differs from customary conventions for construction, meaning, order, or significance for the purpose of a special meaning or effect; a trope.
Final Draft: the last stage of the writing process which the writer submits only after revision and proofreading for a grade
First Draft: the stage of the writing process that follows prewriting and organizing information. Also called rough draft
Flashback. A device that allows the writer to present events that happened before the time of the current narration or the current events in the fiction.
Foot. The basic unit of meter consisting of a group of two or three syllables.
Foreshadowing: A device used in literature to create expectation or to set up an explanation of later developments.
Fragment: an incomplete sentence, this can be accomplished by writing a dependent clause without linking it to an independent clause or by writing a phrase that lacks either a subject or verb
Generalization: A statement that applies to more than one thing; this technique is useful for sorting or summarizing observations
Genre: A category or type of literature or film
Haiku: a Japanese form of poetry that consists of three lines, the first line has five syllables; the second line has seven syllables; and the third line has five syllables
Historical Fiction: Writing that is based at least partially on real events of the past in which the author uses his/her imagination to provide dialogue and detail
Hyperbole: a trope (figure of speech)-- An exaggeration for effect of humor or pathos (ie The locker room smells like a skunk that has been dead on the side of the road for seven days in August.) This is also an example of imagery
Iambic Pentameter: the most commonly used meter. Iambic indicates the pattern: an unstressed syllable followed by a stressed syllable, (commonly represented u /). Pentameter indicates the number of times the pattern repeats: five times. So the scansion for iambic pentameter would read
u/ u/ u/ u/ u/. Iambic pentameter is a required element in both blank verse poetry and in the sonnet.
Idiom: Expressions that are common to one geographic location or language that cannot be taken literally, nor can be understood by looking at the denotation of individual words (ie "Give me a hand" meaning "Help," or "Can you crack the window?" meaning "Open it about 1/4 of an inch," or "Shake a leg" meaning "Hurry up.")
Image: A concrete representation of an object or sensory experience. Typically, such a representation helps evoke the feelings associated with the object or experience itself.
Imagery: Language that appeals to the senses; also called Sensory language. (for elaboration)
Indirect Object: a noun or pronoun that receives the direct object—answers the questions to whom or from whom, to what or from what
Inference: A conclusion based on facts or premises
Interjection: part of speech—a word that shows excitement and emotion, generally set apart from the sentence by an exclamation point or comma
Irony. A mode of expression, through words (verbal irony) or events (irony of situation), conveying a reality different from and usually opposite to appearance or expectation.
Jargon: language and phrases that are specific to a trade and are understandable only within that context. (ie If you were to tell a friend who lives in Minnesota that you are stressed about TAKS. She might wonder why a push-pin would have you worried.)
Limerick:a nonsensical or humorous poem of five anapestic lines, usually with the rhyme scheme aabba. The content is often ribald, or bawdy.
Literal Language: Language that incorporates the normal construction or meaning of words, the speaker/ writer intends to be mean simply what is said
Lyric Poetry: A poem expressing the subjective feelings and personal emotions of the poet as opposed to relating a narrative. Such poetry is melodic, since it was originally accompanied by a lyre in recitals.
Media: The substance or means of conveying a message (ie film, audiotape, canvas, text)
Metaphor: A figure of speech that expresses an idea through the image of another object. Metaphors suggest the essence of the first object by identifying it with certain qualities of the second object.
Directly Stated Metaphor: the comparision is stated outright
ie "the fog is a cat that curls up into a ball around the house."
Implied Metaphor: the comparison is not stated outright
ie "The yellow fog that rubs its back upon the window-panes,
The yellow smoke that rubs its muzzle on the window-panes
Licked its tongue into the corners of the evening,
. . . Curled once about the house and fell asleep.
(Excerpt from "The Lovesong of J. Alfred Prufrock" by T.S. Eliot
Extended Metaphor: several comparisons are made between the two objects
Dead Metaphor: A metaphor that has been used so frequently, people do not even realize it is a metaphor.
ie "time flies"
Conceit: an elaborate metaphor between two things that are startlingly different
Edward Taylor compares the sun to a bowling ball- God is the bowler, the universe his alley
Meter: A rhythm created by the rise and fall of accented and unaccented syllables following a set pattern (contrast with cadence)
Metyonmy - a figure of speech in which the name of one object is substituted for that of another closely associated with it. ie Queen Elizabeth is referred to as "the Crown."
Mood: The prevailing emotions of a work or of the author in his or her creation of the work. The mood of a work is not always what might be expected based on its subject matter.
Motivation: The reasons or forces behind the actions of a character
Narrative: A verse or prose accounting of an event or sequence of events, real or invented.
Nonverbal: Communication using methods other than words (ie gestures, tone of voice, etc)
Noun: part of speech—anything with a name, a person place or thing
Novel: Long fictional prose narrative, usually of more than fifty thousand words
Object of the preposition: The noun or pronoun that follows a preposition and closes the prepositional phrase
Objectivity: A quality in writing characterized by the absence of the author's opinion or feeling about the subject matter.
Occasion: The real life event that leads a writer to create a poem or other work of literature
Onomatopoeia: The use of words whose sounds express or suggest their meaning. In its simplest sense, onomatopoeia may be represented by words that mimic the sounds they denote such as "hiss" or "meow."
Opinion: a judgment about a person or thing, a statement that, although it is true, cannot be proven
Oral Reports: A presentation of information in a speech format
Organizing information: A step in research or essay writing in which the facts collected are arranged into a logical presentation
Oxymoron: A phrase combining two contradictory terms. Oxymorons may be intentional or unintentional.
Parable: A story intended to teach a moral lesson or answer an ethical question.
Paradox: A statement that appears illogical or contradictory at first, but may actually point to an underlying truth.
Parallelism: A method of comparison of two ideas in which each is developed in the same grammatical structure.
Parody. A satiric imitation of a work or of an author with the idea of ridiculing the author, his ideas, or work.
Persona. The person created by the author to tell a story.
Personification: A figure of speech that gives human qualities to abstract ideas, animals, and inanimate objects.
Perspective: the point of view from which a story or idea is observed
Persuasion: writing or speaking that states an opinion and uses facts, examples, and reasons to convince readers
Plagiarism: Claiming another person's written material as one's own. Plagiarism can take the form of direct, word-for-word copying or the theft of the substance or idea of the work. (For elaboration see this)
Plot: In literary criticism, this term refers to the pattern of events in a narrative or drama. In its simplest sense, the plot guides the author in composing the work and helps the reader follow the work.
Point of View: The narrative perspective from which a literary work is presented to the reader.
Political cartoon: A literary genre that employs visual images either with or without words that ridicule contemporary issues, institutions, ideas, or individuals to the purpose of humor or reform
Predicate Adjective: An adjective that modifies that subject that follows a linking or being verb
Preposition: part of speech—a word that shows a relationship between a noun or pronoun and another word in the sentence
Prewrite: the first stage of the writing process in which the writer plans for drafting based on subject, occasion, audience, and purpose of writing
Pronoun: part of speech—a word that takes the place of a noun or nouns
Proverb: A brief, sage saying that expresses a truth about life in a striking manner.
Proofreading: carefully rereading and making connections in grammar, usage, spelling, and mechanics in a piece of writing
Propaganda: an effort to persuade by distorting and misrepresenting information or by disguising opinions as facts
Prose: A literary medium that attempts to mirror the language of everyday speech. It is distinguished from poetry by its use of un-metered, unrhymed language consisting of logically related sentences. Prose is usually grouped into paragraphs that form a cohesive whole such as an essay or a novel
Protagonist: the character who drives the action of the story, the main character, s/he is not necessarily heroic
Pun: A play on words that have similar sounds but different meanings.
Quatrain: Four consecutive lines of poetry that form a single unit often done using rhyme
Research: The process of collecting information on a given subject with the intent of organizing it and presenting it to an audience
Resolution: The denouement, the portion of a story following the climax, in which the conflict is resolved.
Rhyme: Rhetoric Scheme--The repetition of the ending vowel (and following consonant) sound of a word; the similarity between syllable sounds at the end of two or more lines.
Rhythm: The alternation of stressed/ accented and unstressed/ unaccented syllables in language
Run on sentence: Two or more sentences that are linked by either a comma or no punctuation at all
Sarcasm. A form of sneering criticism in which disapproval is often expressed as ironic praise.
Satire: A work that uses ridicule, humor, and wit to criticize and provoke change in human nature and institutions.
Scanning: Cursory examination of text for major ideas
Science Fiction: Literature that is based on the imagination that predicts technological advancements and their effects on society and the individual
Setting: An elementary definition of setting might be: the time and place in which a story occurs; however, setting is the total environment for the action of a fictional work—includes time period, place, as well as the social, political, and perhaps even spiritual realities.
Short Story: Short piece of narrative fiction
Simile: A comparison, usually using "like" or "as", of two essentially dissimilar things, as in "coffee as cold as ice" or "He sounded like a broken record."
Simple sentence: A sentence containing only one independent clause and no dependent clauses
Soliloquy: Long speech in which a character who is alone on stage expresses private thoughts or feelings
Solution: An answer to a problem or conflict
Sonnet. A fourteen line poem, usually in iambic pentameter, with a varied rhyme scheme. The two main types of sonnet are the Petrarchan (or Italian) and the Shakespearean. The Petrarchan Sonnet is divided into two main sections, the octave (first eight lines) and the sestet (last six lines). The octave presents a problem or situation which is then resolved or commented on in the sestet. The most common rhyme scheme is A-B-B-A A-B-B-A C-D-E C-D-E, though there is flexibility in the sestet, such as C-D-C D-C-D. The Shakespearean Sonnet is divided into three quatrains and a couplet.
Speaker: it is the imaginary voice assumed by the writer in poetry
Stanza: A subdivision of a poem consisting of lines grouped together, often in recurring patterns of rhyme, line length, and meter. Stanzas may also serve as units of thought in a poem much like paragraphs in prose.
Style: The manner of expression of a particular writer, produced by choice of words, grammatical structures, use of literary devices, and all the possible parts of language use. Some general styles might include scientific, ornate, plain, and emotive.
Subject-verb agreement: the technique of matching the number of subjects (singular or plural) with the appropriate verb
Summary: information written in a condensed, concise form, touching only the main ideas
Subjectivity: Writing that expresses the author's personal feelings about his subject, and which may or may not include factual information about the subject (see also authoric slant).
Subordinating conjunction: a word used in a complex sentence that introduces the dependent (aka subordinate) clause
Supportive detail: specific events, facts, examples, or reasons that explain or prove the topic sentence
Suspense: The uncertainty or anxiety the audience/ reader feels about what is going to happen next in the story
Symbol. Something that on the surface is its literal self (a concrete existence) but which also has another meaning or even several abstract meanings.
Synecdoche - a form of metaphor in which a part of something is used to stand for the whole thing. ie "Mr. Wilkinson, may I have your daughter's hand in marriage?"
Syntax: The arrangement of words for a desired effect in a literary work.
Theme: The message; the central insight of a work of literature; the author’s opinion about the subject. The term is used interchangeably with thesis.
Thesis:A thesis is both an essay and the point argued in the essay. Thesis novels and thesis plays share the quality of containing a thesis which is supported through the action of the story.
Thesis sentence: A sentence found in the introductory paragraph that indicates the intended subject and opinion of the paper. One way to create this sentence is to write the outline into sentence form;
Tone. The writer's attitude toward his readers and his subject; his mood or moral view. A writer can be formal, informal, playful, ironic, and especially, optimistic or pessimistic.
Topic: the subject of a work of literature
Topic sentence: A statement of the main idea of a paragraph, traditionally the first sentence of the paragraph
Tragedy: A drama in prose or poryty about a noble, courageous hero of excellent character who, because of some tragic character flaw or hamartia, brings ruin upon him- or herself.
Tragic Flaw: In a tragedy, the quality within the hero or heroine which leads to his or her downfall.
Transition words: words and phrases that show how ideas are related or that indicate a change in topics
Understatement: The writer states the case as though it is less than it is. One form of understatement is litotes: understatement through negation: ie "The visit to the dentist was not the most pleasant experience of my life." Another form of understatement is meiosis: understatement through diminishing: ie "The doctor said I would feel slight discomfort; this is kind of like saying the Titanic was a slight boating accident."
Verb: a word that shows an action or state of being
Verbal Irony - a type of irony in which words are used to suggest the opposite of what is meant; often occurs as sarcasm. ie On a gray, rainy day, your best friend says, "Lovely weather we're having."
To cite definitions from this page use the following:
Harmon, Kendrick and J. Willingham. “English Language Arts Terminolgy Definitions and Examples.”
PHS English Department Webpage. 1 June 2004 <
www.angelfire.com/tx6/family2/phs/ela>.
Imagery: language that creates within the reader's mind sensory images.
Visual imagery paints a picture in the reader's mind.
ie Like a princess, she floats into the room, ebony curls sliding carelessly over ivory shoulders draped elegantly in emerald velvet.
Auditory imagery causes the reader to "hear" within his/her mind the sounds described and often incorporates the technique of onomatopeoia.
ie In excerpts taken from "The Bells" by Edgar Allan Poe, readers can practically hear the jingle of the sleigh bells.
Hear the sledges with their bells--
Silver bells
What a world of merriment their melody foretells!
How they tinkle, tinkle, tinkle,
In the icy air of night . . .
Keeping time, time, time,
In a sort of runic rhyme
To the tintintabulation that so musically wells . . .
Using kinesthetic imagery, an author can create a sense of movement in the mind of the reader
ie The lap, lap, lapping of the waves carressed the small craft. Barely perceptible, the rocking back and forth, back and forth, was accentuated only occasionally by the swoosh of a line pulled through the water. Fishing with Grandpa was comfort, not sport.
Tactile imagery appeals to the sense of touch.
ie Like the fur on a kitten, like a fluffy yellow chick, or a rose petal on a bright April morning, Momma's hands stood in stark contrast to Daddy's sandpaper callouses.
Although seldom employed olfactory imagery can be effective as well.
ie The locker room smells just slightly worse than a skunk that has been dead on the side of the road for seven days in August.
[Note: this is also an example of Hyperbole]
Imagery can also appeal to the sense of taste.
ie I will never forget Grandma's biscuits that just sort of melted on the tongue, home-churned butter and honey, with a glass of ice cold milk.
