AP Literature and Composistion MCQ Assisst Terms

Terms apppear on the MCQ questions

Metaphor

A direct comparison between two unlike things without using "like" or "as."

Simile

A comparison using "like" or "as" to highlight similarities between two unlike things.

Personification

The attribution of human qualities to non-human things or abstract ideas.

Alliteration

The repetition of initial consonant sounds in closely positioned words.

"Sally sells sea shells by the sea shore." – Repetition of the s sound.

Assonance

The repetition of vowel sounds in nearby words to create internal rhyming.

"The moon roose over the loose goose." – Repetition of the o sound.

Consonance

The repetition of consonant sounds within or at the end of words.

"I rose and told him of my woe." – Repetition of the long o sound.

Onomatopoeia

A word that imitates the natural sound of a thing, such as "buzz" or "clang."

Imagery

Descriptive language that appeals to the senses, creating mental pictures.

Symbolism

The use of symbols to signify ideas or qualities beyond their literal sense.

Irony (verbal)

When what is said is opposite to what is meant.

Irony (situational)

When what happens is contrary to what was expected.

Irony (dramatic)

When the audience knows something the characters do not.

Allusion

A reference to a well-known person, place, event, or work of literature.

Tone

The author's attitude toward the subject conveyed through style and diction.

Mood

The emotional atmosphere evoked in the reader by the text.

Diction

The choice and use of words and phrases in writing.

Syntax

The arrangement of words and phrases to create well-formed sentences.

Juxtaposition

The placement of two contrasting ideas close together for effect.

Paradox

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

Oxymoron

A figure of speech combining contradictory terms, like "deafening silence."

Anaphora

The repetition of a word or phrase at the beginning of successive lines or clauses.

Epistrophe

The repetition of a word or phrase at the end of successive lines or clauses.

Polysyndeton

The use of multiple conjunctions close together for rhetorical effect. (FANBOYS)

Asyndeton

The omission of conjunctions between parts of a sentence.

Metonymy

A figure of speech in which something is referred to by something closely associated with it.

Synecdoche

A figure of speech in which a part is made to represent the whole.

Hyperbole

Exaggerated statements not meant to be taken literally.

Understatement

The presentation of something as being smaller or less significant than it is.

Motif

A recurring element, image, or idea in a literary work.

Theme

The central idea or message conveyed by a literary work.

Connotation

The emotional or cultural associations surrounding a word.

Denotation

The literal, dictionary definition of a word.

Foil

A character who contrasts with another character to highlight traits.

Stream of Consciousness

A narrative technique that presents the flow of thoughts and feelings in a character’s mind.

Shakespearean Sonnet

A 14-line poem with three quatrains and a final rhymed couplet, following the ABABCDCDEFEFGG rhyme scheme.

Petrarchan Sonnet

A 14-line poem divided into an octave (ABBAABBA) and a sestet (CDECDE or CDCDCD), with a volta at the ninth line.

Spenserian Sonnet

A variation of the Shakespearean sonnet with interlocking rhyme: ABABBCBCCDCDEE.

Elegy

A mournful, melancholic poem lamenting the dead or reflecting on death.

Ode

A formal, lyrical poem that expresses praise for a person, object, or idea.

Ballad

A narrative poem is typically arranged in quatrains with an ABAB or ABCB rhyme scheme.

Lyric Poem

A short poem expressing personal emotions, often in the first person.

Pastoral

A poem that idealizes rural life and nature.

Dramatic Monologue

A poem in which a speaker addresses a silent listener, revealing aspects of their character.

Epic

A long narrative poem about heroic deeds, often involving a journey or great conflict.

Stanza

A group of lines in a poem, like a paragraph in prose.

Couplet

Two consecutive lines of poetry that usually rhyme.

Tercet

A set of three lines that may or may not rhyme, often found in poetic forms like terza rima.

Quatrain

A four line stanza, often with an ABAB or AABB rhyme scheme.

Sestet

A six line stanza, often forming the second part of a Petrarchan sonnet.

Octave

An eight line stanza, usually the first section of a Petrarchan sonnet.

Enjambment

When a sentence or clause runs over from one line of poetry to the next without a pause.

Caesura

A deliberate pause or break in the middle of a line of poetry, often marked by punctuation.

Volta

The shift or turn in a sonnet, often indicating a change in tone, argument, or perspective.

Rhyme Scheme

The ordered pattern of rhymes at the ends of lines, typically labeled with letters.

Internal Rhyme

Rhyme that occurs within a single line of verse.

Slant Rhyme

A near rhyme in which the sounds are similar but not identical, often for stylistic effect.

Meter

The structured rhythm of a poem, based on patterns of stressed and unstressed syllables.

Foot

The basic unit of meter consisting of a combination of stressed and unstressed syllables.

Iamb

A metrical foot with an unstressed syllable followed by a stressed syllable (˘ˊ).

Trochee

A metrical foot with a stressed syllable followed by an unstressed syllable (ˊ˘).

Iambic Pentameter

A line with five iambic feet, totaling ten syllables, common in Shakespearean verse.

Free Verse

Poetry that does not follow a regular rhyme or metrical pattern.

Blank Verse

Unrhymed iambic pentameter, frequently used in English dramatic and narrative poetry.