AP Language Rhetoric & Style - Vocabulary Flashcards

Vocabulary flashcards covering key terms and definitions from AP Language rhetorical terms and concepts across the provided notes.

Sarcasm

A bitter, caustic form of irony intended to hurt or ridicule; can be witty when well done, but may be cruel if poorly executed.

Satire

A work that targets vices or social institutions for reform or ridicule; a style of writing using devices like irony, wit, parody, and hyperbole.

Semantics

The branch of linguistics that studies meaning, including word meanings, connotations, historical/psychological development, and relations between words.

Style

The blend of diction, syntax, figurative language, and other devices; also a way to classify authors or periods and recognize individual voice.

Subordinate Clause

A dependent clause that cannot stand alone and depends on a main clause; often begins with although, because, if, since, when, etc.

Syllogism

A deductive logical argument with a major premise and a minor premise that leads to a conclusion; its validity depends on the truth of the premises.

Symbol

An object that represents something more abstract or symbolic beyond its literal meaning; can be natural, conventional, or literary.

Symbolism

The use of symbols to represent ideas or abstractions; can be simple or complex in conveying meaning.

Syntax

The arrangement of words into phrases, clauses, and sentences; distinct from diction and involved in shaping how ideas are conveyed.

Theme

The central idea or message of a work, often implicit; the insight offered about life or human nature.

Thesis

In expository writing, the sentence(s) that states the author's main purpose or argument.

Tone

The author's attitude toward the material, audience, or both, as reflected in style and word choice.

Transition

A word or phrase that links ideas and signals shifts between sentences or paragraphs.

Understatement

The ironic minimizing of fact; presents something as less significant than it is, often for humorous or emphatic effect.

Undertone

An underlying attitude or quality beneath the surface tone of a work.

Wit

Intellectually amusing language that surprises and delights; concise, clever remarks showing verbal quickness.

Zeugma

A figure of speech where a single word governs or modifies two or more words in a way that applies to one more than the others.

Generic conventions

Traditions or features specific to a genre that help define it and differentiate it from other genres.

Genre

The major category of a literary work (prose, poetry, drama) with subdivisions like autobiography, criticism, essays, etc.

Homily

A serious talk or lecture conveying moral or spiritual advice; originally a sermon.

Hyperbole

A deliberate exaggeration used for emphasis or humorous effect; often creates irony.

Imagery

Descriptive language that appeals to the senses; paints mental pictures and can convey broader meaning.

Inference/Infer

A conclusion drawn from evidence and reasoning, not directly stated in the text.

Invective

A harsh, emotionally violent verbal attack or denunciation.

Irony/Ironic

A contrast between what is stated and what is meant, or between expectation and reality; includes verbal, situational, and dramatic irony.

Juxtaposition

Placing two or more ideas, places, or characters side by side for contrast or comparison.

Loose sentence

A sentence in which the main idea comes first, followed by subordinate clauses or phrases; often informal.

Metaphor

A figure of speech that implies a comparison between unlike things without using like or as.

Metonymy

A figure of speech in which a closely related term is substituted for the thing actually meant.

Narrative

The telling of a story or account of events.

Onomatopoeia

A word that imitates the sound it represents (e.g., buzz, hiss, crack).

Oxymoron

A combination of two seemingly contradictory terms (e.g., jumbo shrimp) to create a paradoxical effect.

Paradox

A statement that appears self-contradictory yet reveals some truth or validity upon closer inspection.

Parallelism

The arrangement of words or phrases in a similar grammatical structure to create balance and rhythm.

Parody

A work that imitates another’s style or content for comic effect or ridicule, often to enlighten about the original.

Pedantic

Characterized by an overly scholarly or bookish tone; excessively concerned with formal rules or details.

Periodic Sentence

A sentence where the main idea is withheld until the end, preceded by subordinate clauses for emphasis.

Personification

A figure of speech that gives human attributes to nonhuman things to create vivid imagery.

Point of View

The perspective from which a story is told; includes first person and various third-person perspectives; also refers to the author’s attitude in analysis.

Prose

One of the major literary divisions (as opposed to poetry); fiction and nonfiction written in ordinary language.

Repetition

The intentional reuse of a word, phrase, clause, or grammatical pattern for emphasis or unity.

Rhetoric

The art of effective or persuasive speaking or writing, especially through the use of stylistic devices.

Rhetorical Modes

The four primary types of writing: exposition, argumentation (persuasion), description, and narration, each with distinct purposes.

Allegory

A narrative in which characters and events symbolize a deeper moral, political, or spiritual meaning beyond the surface story.

Alliteration

The repetition of initial consonant sounds in neighboring words for musical or emphatic effect.

Allusion

A brief, indirect reference to a person, place, event, or work that the reader is expected to recognize.

Ambiguity

The presence of two or more possible meanings in a word, phrase, or passage.

Analogy

A comparison that explains or clarifies by showing similarities between two things; often used to illuminate unfamiliar concepts.

Anaphora

The repetition of a word or phrase at the beginning of successive clauses or lines for emphasis.

Anecdote

A short narrative detailing an interesting or amusing incident; often used to illustrate a point.

Antecedent

The noun or pronoun to which a pronoun refers.

Aphorism

A concise, pointed statement of truth or principle, often attributed to a known author.

Apostrophe

A figure of speech that directly addresses an absent or imaginary person or abstraction as if present.

Atmosphere

The emotional mood created by a literary work, often influenced by setting and descriptive details.

Chiasmus

A rhetorical figure in which words or concepts are presented in a balanced reversal of order (ABBA).</

Clause

A grammatical unit containing a subject and a verb; can be independent (can stand alone) or dependent (cannot stand alone).

Colloquial

informal language using slang or regional expressions appropriate to everyday conversation but not formal writing.

Coherence

The logical and orderly connection of parts in a text that makes it understandable.

Conceit

An extended, elaborate, or surprising metaphor or analogy that creates a striking comparison.

Connotation

The non-literal, associated meanings of a word—the ideas and feelings it evokes beyond its dictionary definition.

Denotation

The literal, primary meaning of a word—the dictionary definition.

Diction

The writer’s or speaker’s word choice, including level of formality and precision, which shapes style and meaning.

Didactic

Text whose primary purpose is to teach or convey moral or ethical principles.

Euphemism

A mild or vague term used in place of a harsher or more uncomfortable one.

Exposition

The introductory information in a work that explains, clarifies, or sets up background; in drama, it introduces tone, setting, and characters.

Extended Metaphor

A metaphor developed at length, throughout a work or section of a work.

Figurative Language

Language that uses figures of speech (metaphor, simile, personification, etc.) to go beyond literal meaning.

Figure of Speech

A rhetorical device or form of expression used to convey meaning beyond the literal sense.