AcDec Lit terms

Alliteration

the occurrence of the same letter or sound at the beginning of adjacent or closely connected words.

Anaphora

repetition of a word or phrase at the beginning of successive phrases, clauses, or lines

Chiasmus

A statement consisting of two parallel parts in which the second part is structurally reversed

Colloquialism

informal words or expressions not usually acceptable in formal writing

Complacent

self-satisfied

Condescending

possessing an attitude of superiority, patronizing

Consonance

Repetition of a consonant sound within two or more words in close proximity.

Didactic

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

Euphemism

An indirect, less offensive way of saying something that is considered unpleasant

Histrionic

overly dramatic

Interrogative Sentences

Sentences that ask a direct question. Always ends with a question mark.

Juxtaposition

Placement of two things closely together to emphasize comparisons or contrasts

Litotes

A form of understatement that involves making an affirmative point by denying its opposite

Metonymy

A figure of speech in which something is referred to by using the name of something that is associated with it

Onomatopoeia

A word that imitates the sound it represents.

Parallel Grammatical Structure

using the same pattern of words to show that two or more ideas have the same level of importance

Parenthetical Expression

an expression inserted into the flow of thought and set off by parentheses

Polysyndeton

Deliberate use of many conjunctions

Syndeton

phrase whose parts are joined by a conjunction

Synedoche

figure of speech that uses a part to represent the whole

Synethesia

describing one kind of sensation in terms of another ("a loud color", "a sweet sound")

Tmesis

Intentionally breaking a word into two parts for emphasis