AP Language and Composition: Syntax, Rhetorical Appeals, Diction, and Figurative Language

A complete set of vocabulary flashcards covering syntax styles, rhetorical appeals, diction, figurative language, and parts of speech as outlined in the AP Lang Summer $$2026$$ notes.

Syntax

The way an author chooses to join words into phrases, clauses, and sentences; it is differentiated from diction in that it refers to groups of words rather than individual words.

Segregating style

Consists of relatively short, uncomplicated sentences which are strong, repetitive, and emphatic, often writing at most $750$ words a day.

Freight-train style

A style that couples short independent clauses to make longer sequential statements to link events, ideas, or impressions as immediately as possible.

Parataxis

A style where independent clauses are butted together without conjunctions, using semicolons or commas for a lack of fluidity.

Triadic sentence

A freight train sentence composed in $3$ units that provides a clearer structural principle and tends to be repetitive.

Cumulative sentence

Consists of an initial independent clause followed by a number of subordinate constructions that accumulate details about a person, place, event, or idea, such as in the example of $7000$ Romaine St.

Parallelism

Means that two or more words or constructions stand in an identical grammatical relationship to the same thing, making it pleasant to hear and economical.

Balanced sentence

Consists of two parts roughly equivalent in both length and significance and divided by a pause.

Loose sentence

A sentence where the main clause comes first and is followed by the subordinate clauses and phrases.

Periodic sentence

A sentence where subordinate constructions precede the main clause which closes the sentence, often used to increase importance by delaying the principal thought.

Convoluted sentence

A sentence where the main clause is split in two, opening and closing the sentence, while subordinate constructions intrude between the parts.

Centered sentence

A sentence where the main clause occupies the middle and is both preceded and followed by subordinate constructions.

Fragment

A single word, phrase, or a dependent clause standing alone as a sentence; generally a fault in formal writing but valuable for eye-catching emphasis.

Rhetorical appeal

The persuasive device by which a writer tries to sway the audience's attention and response to any given work.

Logos

A rhetorical appeal that employs logical reasoning combining clear ideas with well-thought-out and appropriate examples and details.

Ethos

A rhetorical appeal that establishes credibility in the speaker by reflecting common attitudes, beliefs, and characteristics of a group or time period.

Pathos

A rhetorical appeal that plays on the reader's emotions and interests to draw upon their understanding and gain acceptance for assertions.

Active voice

A sentence structure where the subject performs the action expressed in the verb, such as 'The dog bit the boy.'

Passive voice

A sentence structure where the subject receives the action expressed in the verb, such as 'The boy was bitten by the dog.'

Antithesis

The opposition or contrast of ideas; the direct opposite.

Aphorism

A terse statement of known authorship that expresses a general truth or a moral principle.

Chiasmus

A figure of speech based on inverted parallelism where two clauses are related to each other through a reversal of terms.

Juxtaposition

Placing dissimilar items, descriptions, or ideas close together or side by side, especially for comparison or contrast.

Punctuation

How an author uses marks in a sentence to affect its meaning.

Repetition

The exact or approximate duplication of any element of language, such as sound, word, phrase, clause, or grammatical pattern.

Alliteration

The repetition of sounds, especially initial consonant sounds in two or more neighboring words.

Diction

Refers to the writer's word choices, especially regarding their correctness, clearness, or effectiveness in complementing the author's purpose.

Abstract words

Words that signify things that cannot be perceived, such as honor, generosity, idea, or democracy.

Concrete words

Words that refer to perceptible things, such as a rose, a clap of thunder, or the odor of violets.

Ambiguity

The multiple meanings, either intentional or unintentional, of a word, phrase, sentence, or passage.

Colloquialism

The use of slang or informalities in speech or writing, including local or regional dialects, giving a conversational tone.

Pretentious diction

Using big words to no purpose except perhaps to show off.

Clichés

Trite expressions devalued by overuse, such as 'dead as a doornail' or 'light as a feather.'

Euphemism

A more agreeable or less offensive substitute for a generally unpleasant word or concept, derived from the Greek for 'good speech.'

Jargon

Technical language that is misused.

Connotation

The non-literal, associative meaning of a word; the implied, suggested meaning involving ideas or emotions.

Denotation

The strict, literal, dictionary definition of a word, devoid of any emotion, attitude, or color.

Formal vs. informal usage

Levels of usage referring to the kind of situation in which a word is normally used, such as exacerbate versus bug.

Hyperbole

A figure of speech using deliberate exaggeration or overstatement, often producing irony.

Idiom

A combination of words functioning as a unit of meaning, such as 'to take the bus home.'

Onomatopoeia

A figure of speech in which natural sounds are imitated in the sounds of words, like buzz, hiss, or hum.

Tone

Describes the author's attitude toward his material, the audience, or both, similar to mood.

Simile

A brief comparison between two items, usually introduced by the words like or as.

Metaphor

A figure of speech using implied comparison of seemingly unlike things or the substitution of one for the other.

Personification

A figure of speech in which the author endows concepts, animals, or inanimate objects with human attributes or emotions.

Allusion

A direct or indirect reference to something commonly known, such as an event, book, myth, place, or work of art.

Irony

The contrast between what is stated explicitly and what is really meant, or the difference between what appears to be and what is true.

Verbal irony

A type of irony where the words literally state the opposite of the writer's or speaker's meaning.

Situational irony

A type of irony where events turn out the opposite of what was expected.

Dramatic irony

A type of irony where facts are unknown to a character but known to the reader, audience, or other characters.

Overstatement

Another term for hyperbole; the deliberate use of exaggeration.

Understatement

The ironic minimalizing of fact, presenting something as less significant than it is; the opposite of hyperbole.

Litotes

A figure of speech by which an affirmation is made indirectly by denying its opposite, such as 'He was not averse to drinking.'

Meiosis

The Greek term for understatement or belittling, used when something is referred to in terms less important than it deserves.

Pun

A word employed in two senses or used in a context that suggests a second term sounding like it, usually for comic effect.

Imagery

Sensory details or figurative language used to describe, arouse emotion, or represent abstractions through the five senses.

Allegory

The device of using character or story elements symbolically to represent an abstraction in addition to the literal meaning.

Analogy

A similarity or comparison between two different things or the relationship between them used to explain the unfamiliar.

Apostrophe

A figure of speech that directly addresses an absent/imaginary person or personified abstraction that cannot answer.

Conceit

A fanciful expression, usually an extended metaphor or surprising analogy, that displays intellectual cleverness through unusual comparison.

Extended metaphor

A metaphor developed at great length, occurring frequently in or throughout a work.

Metonymy

A Greek term meaning 'changed label,' where the name of one object is substituted for that of another closely associated with it.

Oxymoron

A figure of speech where an author groups apparently contradictory terms to suggest a paradox, such as 'jumbo shrimp.'

Paradox

A statement that appears to be self-contradictory or opposed to common sense but upon closer inspection contains truth or validity.

Symbol

Anything that represents itself and stands for something more abstract, categorized into natural, conventional, and literary types.

Natural symbols

Objects from nature used to symbolize ideas commonly associated with them, such as a rose symbolizing love.

Conventional symbols

Symbols invested with meaning by a group, such as religious icons or national flags like the Star of David or the eagle.

Literary symbols

Symbols found in a variety of works that are generally recognized but may be more complicated within a specific work like Heart of Darkness.

Zeugma

The use of a word to modify or govern two or more words although its use may be grammatically or logically correct with only one.

Voice

The quality of a verb indicating if the subject acts or is acted upon, or the distinctive style of an author or narrator.

Adjective

The part of speech that modifies a noun or pronoun.

Adverb

The part of speech that modifies a verb, adjective, or other adverb.

Antecedent

The noun or noun phrase referred to by a pronoun.

Complement

A word or word group that completes the predicate in a sentence.

Conjunction

The part of speech that serves to connect words, phrases, clauses, or sentences.

Noun

The part of speech used to name a person, place, thing, quality, or action.

Predicate

One of the two main parts of a sentence, modifying the subject and including the verb, objects, or phrases governed by the verb.

Pronoun

A word that takes the place of a noun.

Subject

The part of a sentence or clause that indicates what it is about.

Synecdoche

A figure of speech in which a part is used to represent the whole or the whole is used to represent a part.

Transition

The connection between two parts of a piece of writing that contributes to coherence.

Verb

The part of speech that describes an action or occurrence or indicates a state of being.

Thesis

The main idea of an essay or report, often written as a single declarative sentence.

Asyndeton

The omission of conjunctions between words, phrases, or clauses.