AP English Terms

anomalous

anomalous

(adj.) abnormal, irregular, departing from the usual

aspersion

(n.) a damaging or derogatory statement; the act of slandering or defaming

bizarre

(adj.) extremely strange, unusual, atypical

brusque

(adj.) abrupt, blunt, with no formalities

cajole

(v.) to coax, persuade through flattery or artifice; to deceive with soothing thoughts or false promises

castigate

(v.) to punish severely; to criticize severely

contrive

(v.) to plan with ingenuity, invent; to bring about as the result of a scheme or plan

demagogue

(n.) a leader who exploits popular prejudices and false claims and promises in order to gain power

disabuse

(v.) to free from deception or error, set right in ideas or thinking

ennui

(n.) weariness and dissatisfaction from lack of occupation or interest, boredom

fetter

(n.) a chain or shackle placed on the feet (often used in plural); anything that confines or restrains; (v.) to chain or shackle; to render helpless or impotent

heinous

(adj.) very wicked, offensive, hateful

immutable

(adj.) not subject to change, constant

insurgent

(n.) one who rebels or rises against authority; (adj.) rising in revolt, refusing to accept authority; surging or rushing in or on

megalomania

(n.) a delusion marked by a feeling of power, wealth, talent, etc., far in excess of reality

sinecure

(n.) a position requiring little or no work; an easy job

surreptitious

(adj.) stealthy, secret, intended to escape observation; made or accomplished by fraud

transgress

(v.) to go beyond a limit or boundary; to sin, violate a law

transmute

(v.) to change from one nature, substance, or form to another

vicarious

(adj.) performed, suffered, or otherwise experienced by one person in place of another

antithesis

the direct opposite, a sharp contrast

self-deprecating

belittling or undervaluing oneself; excessively modest

poignant

deeply affecting, touching; keen or sharp in taste or smell

remorse

deep regret or guilt for a wrong committed

feigned

pretended

ambivalence

having mixed feelings or contradictory ideas about something or someone.

cynical

doubtful or distrustful of the goodness or sincerity of human motives

bemused

confused; bewildered

scornful

feeling or expressing contempt or derision

acerbic

biting, bitter in tone or taste

inimitable

so good or unusual as to be impossible to copy; unique.

double entendre

a statement that has two meanings, one of which is dirty or vulgar

folksy

very informal and familiar; having the characteristics of traditional culture and customs, especially in a contrived or artificial way.

churlish

lacking politeness or good manners; lacking sensitivity; difficult to work with or deal with; rude

euphemism

an indirect, less offensive way of saying something that is considered unpleasant

strident

loud and harsh

dogmatic

stubbornly opinionated

verbose

wordy

impetus

a moving force, impulse, stimulus; the force or energy with which a body moves; the force that makes something happen or happen more quickly

droll

amusingly odd

contemplative

studying, thinking, reflecting on an issue

conciliatory

intended or likely to placate or pacify

anecdote

a short and amusing or interesting story about a real incident or person

effusive

emotionally excessive; overly demonstrative

pedantic

tending to show off one's learning

terse

brief and to the point

idolatrous

given to intense or excessive devotion to something

capricious

impulsive and unpredictable

solemnity

seriousness

imperious

overbearing, arrogant; seeking to dominate; pressing, compelling

refute

argue against; prove wrong

sacrilegious

grossly disrespectful of what is sacred

inscrutable

incapable of being understood; impossible to see through physically

dissipate

to cause to disappear; to scatter, dispel; to spend foolishly, squander; to be extravagant in pursuit of pleasure

combative

eager to fight

aloof

not friendly or forthcoming; cool and distant

didactic

instructive

colloquial

characteristic of ordinary conversation rather than formal speech or writing

dubious

doubtful

erratic

not regular or consistent; different from what is ordinarily expected; undependable

arch

chief, first, rule

brusque

abrupt, blunt, with no formalities

enigmatic

puzzling, perplexing, inexplicable, not easily understood

elegiac

expressing sorrow or lamentation; relating to an elegy

incorrigible

not able to be corrected; beyond control

vitiate

to weaken, debase, or corrupt; to impair the quality or value of

sardonic

grimly or scornfully mocking, bitterly sarcastic

censorious

severely critical of others.

propriety

the state of being proper, appropriateness; standards of what is proper or socially acceptable

continuum

a continuous whole without clear division into parts

surrogate

one acting in place of another; substitute

petulant

peevish, annoyed by trifles, easily irritated and upset

unequivocal

absolute; certain

reticent

not revealing one's thoughts or feelings readily

tenuous

thin, slender, not dense; lacking clarity or sharpness; of slight importance or significance; lacking a sound basis, poorly supported

garrulous

excessively talkative

facetious

humorous, not meant seriously

homily

a sermon stressing moral principles; a tedious moralizing lecture or discourse

unobtrusive

not readily noticeable, inconspicuous

deleterious

harmful

nugatory

of no value or importance

soporific

tending to cause sleep, relating to sleepiness or lethargy; something that induces sleep

imprecation

a curse; damnation

desiccated

dried up; dehydrated

ad hominem arugment

an argument attacking an individual's character rather than his or her position on an issue

allegory

a story, poem, or picture that can be interpreted to reveal a hidden meaning, typically a moral or political one

alliteration

repetition of initial consonant sounds

allusion

a reference to another work of literature, person, or event

ambiguity

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

analogy

a comparison of two different things that are similar in some way

antecedent

the word, phrase, or clause referred to by a pronoun

aphorism

a brief, cleverly worded statement that makes a wise observation about life

apostrophe

address someone not there

atmosphere

the environment and tone of the setting

clause

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

conceit

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

connotation

an idea or feeling that a word invokes in addition to its literal or primary meaning

denotation

the dictionary definition of a word

diction

word choice

rhetoric

the art of using language effectively and persuasively