english AP words

freshman, list 1

alliteration

repetition of sounds "boiling bubbles"

allusion

direct/indirect reference to something commonly known “studying is my achilles’ heel”

apostrophe

figure of speech, addressing absent or abstract person “o romeo, romeo! wherefore art thou romeo”

atmosphere

emotional tone or mood influencing how one feels “Red Room has eerie atmosphere”

colloquial/colloquialism

use of slang or informalities in language, conversational “how are yall”

connotation

non literal associative meaning, implied meaning “house vs home”

denotation

strict literal definition, no emotion “homework denotes work to do, but connotes negative emotions”

diction

style of writer’s word choices, how the author writes “stone vs boulder”

didactic

means teaching, aims of instructing “teacher didacts lesson on jane eyre"

euphemism

less offensive substitute for unpleasant words “no longer with us”

extended metaphor

metaphor devloped at great length or throughout work “comparison of dickinson quote”

figurative language

does not say what it means, have leaders imagination ambiguous “smiled bright as the sun”

genre

type or category of literature “comedy”

hyperbole

exaggeration in literature, emphasis “raining cats and dogs”

imagery

sensory details and figurative language to describe “the orange tasted sweet and citrusy”

infer

draw a conclusion from, hypothesis “infer other character’s thoughts”

litotes

denying opposite for emphasis, opposite of hyperbole “i’m doing great, i just got a 50”

metaphor

figurative language saying something isnt what it is “the wind is our guide”

metonymy

substitutes name of something to something connected “crown = the king”

mood

atmosphere, how reader feels “ mood is eerie”

narrative

collection of events that tells a story, recounted

pedantic

adjective, using overly scholarly or show-offy words “like a teacher’s pet”

personification

inorganic items are given human actions or traits “wind screamed”

pov

perspective story is told to reader “first pov is from their thoughts”

prose

style of writing, fiction or nonfiction “harry potter”

rhetoric

orator, like a speaker “a politician is a good rhetoric speaker”

sarcasm

irony for ridicule or bitter “nice perfume, must you marinate it'“

satire

work that targets human vices like a sit com “how i met your mother”

symbol

abstract representation for something concrete “red room in jane eyre”

synecdoche

part of something is representing the whole “wheels to car”

syntax

joining similar words into a group “cat sat on the mat”

theme

main idea or message “theme of jane eyre is indepedence”

tone

authors attitude to own work and language “harsh tone”

understatement

minimizing of facts, ex litotes “finals take an hour”