AP Language Vocab with Oxford (2025-2026)

WITH LIT TERMS

belabor

To elaborate excessively (w/ object)

denoted

to indicate

eschew

To avoid

taciturn

Habitually silent

credence

belief in something (w/in)

evince

To show

nefarious

Wicked

Ostensibly

supposedly

bastion

A fortress; a stronghold

jettison

to discard

rhetorical question

A question to with the answer is already known; a question to which the answer is not sought.

non-sequitir

Something that logically does not follow what precedes it

extended metaphor

A metaphor that extends throughout the entire text.

emulate

to imitate

euphemism

A milder expression replacing a more offensive one.

gainsay

to deny/contradict

innate

inborn

felicity

great happiness

elucidate

to clairfy

onerous

burdensome

robust

strong and healthy

dolt

a stupid person

attenuate

to weaken in force/effect

grammatical parallelism

when words have the same grammatical function or form

periodic sentence

A sentence begins, drifts off to another point, and then concludes

paradox

Something that seems false/impossible, but is true

placate

to make less angry

abject

of the worst type

nascent

newly formed

abide

to accept and follow

ameliorate

to make something bad better

nadir

the lowest point

pungent

sharp to the senses

rife

prevalent

adept

skilled

surreptiously

secretly

allegory

story in which the characters represent ideas

epigraph

a quote before a text suggesting its theme

apology

a formal defense in speech/writing

eviscerate

to gut

copious

abundant

parsimonious

frugal

propensity

a natural inclination

garner

to gather

foible

a character flaw

sacrosanct

sacred

ignominious

shameful/disgraceful

portend

to indicate in advance

deftly

skillfully

analogy

a comparison

metonymy

When something is represented by a term it connects to.

synecdoche

When a part of something is used to represent the whole thing.

abrogate

to officially appeal

affable

friendly

charlatan

an academic fraud

irrefragable

indisputable

vacillate

to swing back and forth; to be indecisive

stellar

starlike

circumvent

to go around

precipituous

dangerous steep

sordid

dirty

incidentially

by the way

ad hominem

attacking a person’s character, not their claim

red herring

Something used to distract someone from another issue

excluded middle

presenting only 2 extreme options with no middle ground

protract

to prolong

effervescent

bubbly; enthusiatic

caveat

cautionary advice

gregarious

incredibly friendly

exacerbate

to make worse

recalcitrant

Stubbornly resistant

vindicate

to justify; to clear from blame

harbinger

Something that foreshadows

circumspect

careful in speech/actions

untenable

indefensable

figurative language

Words that go beyond their literal meaning

Abstract Language

Language describing the intangible.

Concrete Language

Language describing the tangible.

Ethos

The proof resides in the author. An author appeals to credibility to persuade an audience.

Pathos

The proof resides in the audience. An author offers an appeal to emotions or “passion” to persuade an audience.

Logos

The proof resides in the text. An author appeals to ideas, evidence, exmaples, arguments, and reason to persuade the audience.

embellish

to beautify

placid

calm

mollify

to appease

indelible

cannot be erased

purveyor

someone who promotes an idea

explicate

to explain

sophomoric

immature

frivolous

not serious

assauge

to lessen (usually a negative feeling)

truncate

to shorten

irony

when an outcome does not match/equal expectation

verbal irony

when someone says something but means the opposite

dramatic irony

when the audience knows something the characters don’t

situational irony

when there is irony in a specific situation

pensive

reflectfully thoughtful

extrapolate

to estimate based on known information

ruse

an action intended to decieve

germane

relevant

penchant

A strong inclination