Ap Lang Vocab

Poignant

(a) painfully or deeply affecting the feelings, (b) ned to make an impression

Patronizing

Adj: apparently kind or helpful but betraying a feeling of superiority; condescending
V: frequent (a store, theater, restaurant, or other establishment) as a customer.

Incredulous

Adj: unwilling or unable to believe something

Forthright

Adj: direct and outspoken; straightforward and honest.

Unabashed

Adj: not embarrassed or ashamed; unapologetic.

Wry

using or expressing dry, especially mocking, humor.

Pretentious

Adj: attempting to impress by affecting greater importance talent culture than is actually possessed

Brazen

Adj: bold without shame
V: endure an unpleasant situation without shame

Ambivalent

Adj: Having mixed feelings or ideas about something

Incensed

adj: very angry

pragmatic

Adj: dealing with things sensibly and realistically in a way that is based on practical rather than theoretical considerations

Pompous

Adj: affectedly and irritatingly grand solemn or self important

Reticent

not revealing ones thoughts or feelings readily

Indignant

feeling or showing anger or annoyance at what is perceived to be unfair

Contemptous

Showing contempt: the feeling that a person or thing is beneath consideration worthless or deserving scorn

caustic

Adj: sarcastic in a scathing and bitter way

malicious

characterized by malice, intention to do harm

didactic

intended to teach particularly in having moral instruction as an ulterior motive

Seductive

tempting and attractive

Whimsical

playfully quaint or fanciful especially in an appealing and amusing way

Somber

dark or dull, gloomy

satiric

satire

Urgent

a situation requiring immediate action

mock-heroic

imitation of heroic literature in order to satirize an unheroic subject

diffident

modest or shy because of a lack of self-confidence

Ironic

having in the opposite way that is expected

petty

of little importance

(of behavior) characterized by an undue concern for trivial matters, especially in a small-minded or spiteful way

elegiac

relating to or characteristic of an serious poem

disdainful

showing contempt or lack of respect

lugubrious

sounding sad and dismal

Rhetoric

Language used for persuasion
C: Tangible and obserable things broken glass
A: Ideas such as freedom justice morality

Rhetorical situation

circumstances contexts and elements that impact a text’s creation
C: People place and thing
A: Ideas concepts beliefs and values

Context

Place of rhetorical situation
C: When where what
A: Ideas

Exigence

What prompted the speaker to make an argument
C: Specific moment that prompted a rhetorical response
A: Underlying issue in a rhetorical situation

Speaker

Person making a claim
C: Who
A: values beliefs needs location age background

Audience

People author is trying to reach
C: People
A: Values beliefs needs location age background

Subject

Topic of the piece or discourse
C: What they are talking about
A: Underlying messages

Purpose

What the audience is supposed to understand afterwards
C: New understanding
A: Action

declarative sentence

statement, usually a fact or observation

horative sentence

strongly advising or calling to action

prolepsis

foreseeing objections to an argument

infinitive phrase

to + verb

participal phrase

verb is used as an adjective “the swinging sign”

apostrophe

abstract quality is directly addressed whether present or not “freedom! you amazing man”

zeugma

one word to describe more than one noun “Juel lost his dog and appetite”

metonymy

a figure of speech in which the name of something is replaced with the name of something with which it is closely associated
“The pen is mightier than the sword”

Synecdoche

a very specific form of metonymy where the part represents the whole
“A vast ocean of anxious faces”

Tautology

the repetitive use of words or PHRASES that have similar meanings 

"If I perish, I perish”

Pleonasm

using more adjectives than necessary to describe something

“Frozen ice cubes”

Catachresis

Use of the wrong word for the context
Ex. If it starts to snowball, it will catch fire

Anadiplosis

Repetition of last word of a sentence and the beginning of the next
Ex. Fear leads to anger. Anger leads to hate. Hate leads to suffering

Polysyndeton

Repeatedly using conjunctions in close succession
Ex. He got in the car and took the key out his pocket and put it in the ignition and turned it and started to drive

Asyndeton

Elimination of conjunction between coordinate phrases clauses or words
Ex. This is the guy who deceived you, cheated you, betrayed you

Praeteritio

Strategy in argument of mentioning something by saying it cannot be discussed
Ex. Dont get me started on…

Litotes

An understatement for an effect
Ex. He’s not the sharpest tool in the shed

Bathos 

Poet or writer trying to hard to create passion
Ex. The big strong bodacious beautiful elegant Roman could conquer everything in his sight

Onomatopoeia

Use of words to imitate sounds
Ex. Oink oink

Aphorism

Statement that expresses an observation on life
Ex. Actions speak louder than words

Synesthesia

Description of one kinds of sense impression by using words that describe another sense
Ex. I can hear the skies singing

Cacophoney

Harsh discordance of sound, dissonance
Ex. His fingers rapped and pounded the door, and his foot thumped against the cracked wood

Double entendre

The phrase or meaning has two different meanings and understandings

Ex. The obesity study was looking for a larger test group

Paradox

A statement that seems untrue on the surface

Ex. Not having a fashion is a fashion

Idiom

An expression that has a specific meaning ot a specific group of people
Ex. Its raining cats and dogs

Euphemism

A phrase that is used to say something that is harsh or uncomfortable in a more gentle less awkward manner (letting someone down easy)
Ex. A person is going to a better place (instead of dying)

Epithet

A nickname given to someone that captures part of their character
Ex. Teddy bear, Raider of cities, etc. 

Altruistic

unselfish care and concern for others, even if it comes at the risk of the care-giver

Ambivalent

having mixed feelings that often contradict each other

aversion

a strong dislike or disdain

discern

perceive or recognize something

Disparage

to represent as low value or worthless

embellish

to decorate or enhance via decoration

engender

to cause or give rise to a feeling

innocuous

inoffensive or harnless

insipid

lacking flavor

Repudiate

to disassociate with or refuse to be accepted by