Tropes and Schemes

Vocabulary flashcards created from lecture notes on tropes and schemes.

Tropes

Figures of speech with an unexpected twist in the meaning of words.

Anthimeria

Using a different part of speech to act as another, such as a verb for a noun.

Aporia

Talking about not being able to talk about something.

Apostrophe

Addressing a person not present or a personified abstraction.

Catachresis

A completely impossible figure of speech.

Erotema

Asking a rhetorical question to provoke thought.

Euphemism

Substituting less harsh words for more blunt ones.

Irony

A figure of speech where the opposite of what is meant is stated.

Meiosis

An understatement that presents something as less significant than it is.

Metaphor

An implied comparison between two unlike things.

Metonymy

Using a physical object to embody a more general idea.

Onomatopoeia

Words that sound like what they mean.

Oxymoron

A figure of speech that combines contradictory terms.

Paradox

A statement that appears self-contradictory but reveals a truth.

Personification

Giving human qualities to inanimate objects.

Puns

A humorous twist on the meaning of words.

Simile

An explicit comparison between two unlike things using ‘like’ or ‘as’.

Synæsthesia

Mixing one type of sensory input with another.

Synecdoche

Using a part of an object to represent the whole object.

Zeugma

Using one verb with two or more different objects.

Schemes

Figures of speech that deal with word arrangement and syntax.

Alliosis

Presenting alternatives in a balanced manner.

Alliteration

Repetition of the same consonant sound in successive words.

Anaphora

Repetition of beginning clauses.

Anadiplosis

Repeating the last word of one clause at the beginning of the next.

Antimetabole

Repetition in reverse order.

Antithesis

Contrary ideas expressed in a balanced sentence.

Aposiopesis

Breaking off as if unable to continue.

Appositive

Placing next to a noun another noun or phrase that explains it.

Assonance

Close repetition of similar vowel sounds.

Asyndeton

Using no conjunctions to create an effect of speed or simplicity.

Chiasmus

Two balanced parts which have their elements reversed.

Climax

Arrangement in order of increasing importance.

Ellipsis

Omitting a word implied by the previous clause.

Enallage

Intentionally misusing grammar to create a memorable phrase.

Epanalepsis

Repeating a word from the beginning of a clause at the end.

Epenthesis

Adding an extra syllable in the middle of a word.

Epistrophe

Repetition of a concluding word.

Metaplasmus

Misspelling a word to create a rhetorical effect.

Parallelism

Establishing similar patterns of grammatical structure and length.

Polysyndeton

Using many conjunctions to achieve an overwhelming effect.

Prosthesis

Adding an extra syllable or letters to the beginning of a word.

Symploce

Repeating words at both the beginning and ending of a phrase.

Tmesis

Intentionally breaking a word into two parts for emphasis.