AP Language Exam Vocabulary

Flashcards of vocabulary and key concepts for the AP Language Exam.

Allegory

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

Alliteration

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

Allusion

A direct or indirect reference to something which is presumably commonly known.

Ambiguity

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

Analogy

A similarity or comparison between two different things or the relationship between them.

Antecedent

The word, phrase, or clause referred to by a pronoun.

Antithesis

The opposition or contrast of ideas; the direct opposite.

Aphorism

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

Apostrophe

A figure of speech that directly addresses an absent or imaginary person or a personified abstraction.

Atmosphere

The emotional mood created by the entirety of a literary work, established partly by the setting.

Caricature

A verbal description, the purpose of which is to exaggerate or distort, for comic effect, a person’s distinctive physical features or other characteristics.

Clause

A grammatical unit that contains both a subject and a verb.

Colloquialism

The use of slang or informalities in speech or writing.

Conceit

A fanciful expression, usually in the form of an extended metaphor or surprising analogy between seemingly dissimilar objects.

Connotation

The non-literal, associative meaning of a word; the implied, suggested meaning.

Denotation

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

Diction

Related to style, diction refers to the writer’s word choices, especially with regard to their correctness, clearness, or effectiveness.

Didactic

From the Greek, didactic literally means “teaching.”

Euphemism

From the Greek for “good speech,” euphemisms are a more agreeable or less offensive substitute for a generally unpleasant word or concept.

Extended Metaphor

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

Figurative Language

Writing or speech that is not intended to carry literal meaning and is usually meant to be imaginative and vivid.

Figure of Speech

A device used to produce figurative language.

Generic Conventions

This term describes traditions for each genre.

Genre

The major category into which a literary work fits.

Homily

This term literally means “sermon,” but more informally, it can include any serious talk, speech, or lecture involving moral or spiritual advice.

Hyperbole

A figure of speech using deliberate exaggeration or overstatement.

Imagery

The sensory details or figurative language used to describe, arouse emotion, or represent abstractions.

Inference

To draw a reasonable conclusion from the information presented.

Invective

An emotionally violent, verbal denunciation or attack using strong, abusive language.

Irony/Ironic

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

Litotes

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

Loose Sentence/Non-Periodic Sentence

A type of sentence in which the main idea (independent clause) comes first, followed by dependent grammatical units such as phrases and clauses.

Metaphor

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

Metonymy

A term from the Greek meaning “changed label” or “substitute name,” metonymy is a figure of speech in which the name of one object is substituted for that of another closely associated with it.

Mood

The prevailing atmosphere or emotional aura of a work.

Narrative

The telling of a story or an account of an event or series of events.

Onomatopoeia

A figure of speech in which natural sounds are imitated in the sounds of words.

Oxymoron

From the Greek for “pointedly foolish,” an oxymoron is a figure of speech wherein the author groups apparently contradictory terms to suggest a paradox.

Paradox

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

Parallelism

Also referred to as parallel construction or parallel structure, this term comes from Greek roots meaning “beside one another.”

Anaphora

A sub-type of parallelism, when the exact repetition of words or phrases at the beginning of successive lines or sentences.

Parody

A work that closely imitates the style or content of another with the specific aim of comic effect and/or ridicule.

Pedantic

An adjective that describes words, phrases, or general tone that is overly scholarly, academic, or bookish

Periodic Sentence

The opposite of loose sentence, a sentence that presents its central meaning in a main clause at the end.

Personification

A figure of speech in which the author presents or describes concepts, animals, or inanimate objects by endowing them with human attributes or emotions.

Point of View

In literature, the perspective from which a story is told.

Prose

One of the major divisions of genre, prose refers to fiction and nonfiction, including all its forms.

Repetition

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

Rhetoric

From the Greek for “orator,” this term describes the principles governing the art of writing effectively, eloquently, and persuasively.

Rhetorical Modes

This flexible term describes the variety, the conventions, and the purposes of the major kinds of writing.

Sarcasm

From the Greek meaning “to tear flesh,” sarcasm involves bitter, caustic language that is meant to hurt or ridicule someone or something.

Satire

A work that targets human vices and follies or social institutions and conventions for reform or ridicule.

Semantics

The branch of linguistics that studies the meaning of words, their historical and psychological development, their connotations, and their relation to one another.

Style

The consideration of style has two purposes: (1) An evaluation of the sum of the choices an author makes in blending diction, syntax, figurative language, and other literary devices. (2) Classification of authors to a group and comparison of an author to similar authors.

Subject Complement

The word (with any accompanying phrases) or clause that follows a linking verb and complements, or completes, the subject of the sentence by either (1) renaming it (the predicate nominative) or (2) describing it (the predicate adjective).

Subordinate Clause

Like all clauses, this word group contains both a subject and a verb (plus any accompanying phrases or modifiers), but unlike the independent clause, the subordinate clause cannot stand alone; it does not express a complete thought.

Syllogism

From the Greek for “reckoning together,” a syllogism (or syllogistic reasoning or syllogistic logic) is a deductive system of formal logic that presents two premises (the first one called “major” and the second called “minor”) that inevitably lead to a sound conclusion.

Symbol/Symbolism

Generally, anything that represents itself and stands for something else.

Synecdoche

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

Synesthesia

When one kind of sensory stimulus evokes the subjective experience of another

Syntax

The way an author chooses to join words into phrases, clauses, and sentences.

Theme

The central idea or message of a work, the insight it offers into life.

Thesis

In expository writing, the thesis statement is the sentence or group of sentences that directly expresses the author’s opinion, purpose, meaning, or position.

Tone

Similar to mood, tone describes the author’s attitude toward his material, the audience, or both.

Transition

A word or phrase that links different ideas.

Understatement

The ironic minimalizing of fact, understatement presents something as less significant than it is.

Wit

In modern usage, intellectually amusing language that surprises and delights.