AP Lang

Anaphora

Repeating a word or phrase at the beginning of successive clauses or sentences.

Epistrophe

Repeating a word or phrase at the end of successive clauses or sentences.

Epanalepsis

Repetition of the same word at the beginning and end of a sentence.

Anadiplosis

Repetition of the last word of one sentence at the beginning of the next.

Antimetabole (Chiasmus)

Repetition of words in reverse order.

Asyndeton

Omission of conjunctions between parts of a sentence.

Polysyndeton

Using multiple conjunctions in close succession.

Parataxis

Placing independent clauses next to each other without conjunctions.

Parallelism

Using similar structures in two or more clauses.

Antithesis

Juxtaposing contrasting ideas in balanced phrases.

Hyperbaton

Inverting the normal order of words in a sentence.

Euphemism

A mild or indirect word or expression substituted for one considered to be too harsh or blunt.

Circumlocution

The use of many words where fewer would do, especially in a deliberate attempt to be vague.

Zeugma

Using a word to modify or govern two or more words, where it is appropriate to only one.

Parenthetical elements

Additional information that is set off by parentheses or dashes.

Anapodoton

A phrase that is incomplete but suggests an expected completion.

Vague or Undefined Antecedents

Unclear references that lack context about who or what is being referred to.

Occulated/Occupatio/Paralipsis

Drawing attention to something without directly mentioning it.

Ellipsis/Elliptical Construction

Omission of a word or phrase that is grammatically necessary but can be understood from context.

Aporia

A rhetorical device where a speaker expresses doubt about their own argument.

Litotes

An ironic understatement in which an affirmative is expressed by negating its opposite.