ACCEL ENGLISH 10 FINAL (lit terms & SAT)

bewilder

to confuse or puzzle

virulent

deadly or poisonous

garnish

to decorate; ornamental

brigand

an outlaw; robber

scanty

insufficient; meager

improvident

lacking foresight; careless

parity

similarity; equality

lavish

extravagant; luxurious

traduce

slander; disparage

defray

pay or bear the cost of

banal

overused; cliche

arduous

extremely difficult; laborious

waive

to remove the right

enrapture

delight; enchant

lethargic

sleepy; moving slowly from lack of energy

intrigue

arouse curiosity

delineate

to place in a straight line; organize

malevolent

done with harmful intent

breach

break or infraction/violation

pundit

well-educated, respected; authority

Conjure

to call forth (spirits)

Supple

lithe; easily bendable

Immerse

involve deeply; plunge into liquid

Lament

feel or express grief; mourn

Intrepid

brave; courageous

chastise

discipline; criticize

expedient

helpful; suitable; advantageous

lucent

bright; shining

balmy

mild and refreshing; soothing

allege

assert or declare without proof

falsetto

unnaturally high-pitched voice (especially in a man)

menial

beneath someone; degrading

concur

to agree

dissent

to disagree

frugal

cheap; stingy with money

consolidate

to pull together to form one

espouse

to marry; to adopt (as a cause)

interment

to burry underground

extel

to praise highly

foreclose

to shut out or prevent; take away the right to property

fabricate

create; build

befuddle

bewilder; confuse

syllabus

overview; outline

raze

demolish; tear down

imposition

burden; overwhelming task

envoy

representative; delegate

innate

natural; not learned

eclipse

surpass; reduction of status

exigency

urgency; emergency

domicile

home; place of residence

allegory

a story/narrative with symbolic characters

alliteration

repetition of initial consonant sounds

allusion

a reference in literature to a well-known person/title

assonance

the repetition of vowel sounds in a line or sentence

blank verse

unrhymed iambic pentameter

free verse

poetry with no rhyme and no specific line length

cadence

a rhythmic beat through words/lines

couplet

two consecutive rhyming lines

consonance

similar consonant sounds in words

connotation

the secondary/emotional meaning of a word

denotation

the dictionary meaning of a word

diction (formal)

the choice of words

dramatic monologue

one character speaking to himself

inversion

changing the order of words as normally spoken

epic

a long, narrative poem telling a hero’s journey

figurative language

writing that includes figures of speech

cacophony

a harsh sounding combination of noise

hyperbole

a ridiculous exaggeration

iambic pentameter

five feet (ten syllables) in a line of poetry using a pattern of stressed then unstressed syllables

imagery

writing that appeals to one or more of the senses

internal rhyme

two rhyming words that appear in the same line

end rhyme

words at the end of two separate lines with the same sound

irony

when the opposite of what is expected happens

metaphor

comparing two unlike things without specific wording

meter

the length of a poetic line

mood

the feeling created in the reader

onomatopoeia

when the word mimics the sound it describes

paradox

a seemingly contradictory phrase that is actually true

paraphrase

to completely reword and reorganize an original thought

personification

giving human traits to an inanimate object

quatrain

four consecutive lines in a poem

rhyme scheme

a pattern of rhyming words or lines

simile

comparing two unlike things using “like” or “as”

soliloquy

a speech by one alone on stage (deep, inner thoughts)

sonnet (elizabethan)

a poem with fourteen lines (three quatrains and an ending couplet) utilizing iambic pentameter

stanza

a group of lines in a poem separated from other lines

tone

the feelings of the author clearing shown in the writing

elegy

a mournful poem for the dead

extended metaphor

a comparison that is determined through an entire piece rather than a singular phrase or line

oxymoron

a phrase that seems contradictory

rhythm

a pattern or beat within reading

warrant

authorization; justification

fester

to allow to rot; decaying

inept

not equipped to complete a task; unskilled

nascent

new or beginning

bewail

to cry over; express deep sorrow

belligerent

warlike; beginning an argument

veracity

truthful; honest

elucidate

clarify; explain in detail

illusory

misleading or deceptive