Lexis and Semantics: Rhetorical Devices, Figurative Language, and Key Terms

Vocabulary practice flashcards covering core concepts, definitions, and rhetorical effects in Lexis and Semantics, including rhetorical devices, figurative language, and key linguistic terms.

Hyperbaton

The deliberate inversion of the usual order of words, which gains psychological prominence and alters rhythm.

Anaphora

The repetition of a word or phrase at the start of many sentences to create emphasis, focus, and cohesion.

Euphemism

Indirect language used to maintain politeness and mitigate impact.

Dysphemism

The use of swear words or derogatory terms, producing negativity and degrading the subject.

Anadiplosis

The repetition of a word used at the end of a clause at the start of another, creating emphasis, weight, logical connection, and momentum.

Antimetabole

The repetition of a word or phrase with word order reversed to create emphasis, establish contrast or antonymy, and convey paradox, irony, or memorability.

Epistrophe

The repetition of a word or phrase at the end of a series of sentences, creating emphasis, rhythm, and focus.

Ethos

A rhetorical appeal based on how people think ethically, establishing writer credibility and trustworthiness to increase acceptance.

Antonomasia

The practice of using nicknames and epithets as cultural shorthand to shape tone and narrative stance.

Hyperbole

Deliberate exaggeration used to amplify meaning, shape response, and project an ideological stance.

Logos

A rhetorical appeal based on how people think logically, appealing to objectiveness, structure, and undeniability.

Pathos

A rhetorical appeal based on how people think emotionally, creating a link to a sentiment and provoking an emotional response.

Kairos

A rhetorical appeal referring to time and opportune moment to maximize urgency, persuasive power, or a nostalgic tone.

Rhetorical question

A question asked to provoke reflection and doubt rather than an explicit response.

Hypophora

A rhetorical question that is immediately followed by an answer, used for control, addressing controversy, and introducing new topics smoothly.

Adnomination

A sequence of words with similar roots (e.g., 'someway, somehow…'), which generates cohesion, memorability, and rhythm.

Emotive language

Words that represent or create an emotional response to manipulate audience perception, tilt judgment, and establish a subjective stance over objective facts.

Personification

Applying human qualities to an inanimate object to produce vivid imagery, emotional resonance, and deeper thematic or atmospheric control.

Synecdoche

A figure of speech in which a part of something is referenced to represent an entire entity, enabling semantic compression, sensory focus, and cognitive engagement.

Symbolism

The use of symbols to represent ideas or qualities, providing an emotional shortcut, adding complex thematic depth, and developing setting.

Metaphor

Comparing something to something it is not to shape reader perception, anchor abstract concepts, and reveal the writer's underlying attitude.

Anthropomorphism

Imposing human qualities on animals, making the unfamiliar accessible, bridging emotional distance, and serving as a vehicle for complex allegory and social critique.

Zoomorphism

Describing an entity as having animal-like characteristics, creating a profound impact on tone, characterisation, and power dynamics.

Simile

Comparing two objects using 'as' or 'like' to achieve conceptual mapping, semantic effects, and linguistic positioning.

Metonymy

Reference to an object through a related concept, serving as vivid shorthand that achieves linguistic economy and connotative shifting.

Semantic field

A collection of words grouped by a theme that creates linguistic and thematic cohesion, reinforces dominant themes, and guides the reader's emotional and ideological response.

Subject-specific lexis

Words related to a specific topic or field (jargon) that can establish expertise and authority.

Antonyms

Words with directly opposite meanings to one another, which can create juxtaposition and highlight complexity and conflict.

Archaism

Old-fashioned words that evoke a sense of history, elevate tone, and signal authority.

Denotation

The direct, literal meaning of a word, which establishes an objective and unambiguous baseline.

Connotations

The ideas and feelings associated with a particular word that shape tone, mood, ideology, and audience response.

Synonyms

Words with close or similar meanings to another, used to alter tone, level of formality, and emotional resonance.

Collocation

Words that naturally sound like they go together, shaping predictability, tone, cohesion, and ideological meaning.