AP LANG - vocabulary

Ms. Andrade's vocab

rhetoric

rhetoric

• the art or act of persuasion

• the principles governing effective and persuasive argument

methods of development

• different _______ of writing which you can incorporate into your writing to make it more effective

• refers to the structure and form of writing

• usually work in combination with one another

context

• time, place, and circumstances surrounding a message

• should consider both immediate and broad _____

• social and historical atmosphere

exigence

• the issue, problem, or event that prompts someone to write or speak

• comes from the Latin word for “demand”

• the _______ “demands” that one speaks

rhetorical appeals

• rhetorical strategies used to clarify authors intellectual, moral, and emotional approaches to persuading the audience

• ethos, pathos, and logos

ambiguous

• language that is open to more than one interpretation

• double meaning

anecdote

• a short story that is used to illustrate a point

• can make great hooks, as well as evidence

antecedent

• a word, phrase, or clause that is later referred to by a pronoun

• the ________ comes first and is replaced with a pronoun further on

colloquial

• words or phrases (including slang) used in everyday conversation and informal writing which is usually inappropiate in normal writing

didactic

• writing whose purpose is to instruct or to teach

• usually formal and focuses on moral or ethical concerns

• may be fiction or nonfiction that teaches a specific lesson/moral or provides a model of correct thinking and behavior

parallelism

• a structure that brings together parallel elements

• adda balance, rhythm, and clarity to sentences

• “they were stiff in their pain; their muscles ached, their bones ached, their very hearts ached”

pedantic

• writing and speaking that borders on lecturing

• more often describes a person

• scholarly and academic, often overly difficult to understand

semantics

• the branch of linguistics that studies the meaning of words, their development, their connotations, and their relations to one another

• the language used to achieve a desired effect on an audience through the use of words

syntax

• the way an author chooses to join words into phrases, clauses, and sentences

• diction is about words, _____ is about how words are structured

juxtaposition

• putting together two contrasting elements that are so unlike that the effect is surprising, witty, or startling

• “wealth and poverty, guilt and grief, orange and apple, god and satan; let us settle ourselves and work”

antithesis

• opposition or contrast emphasized by parallel structure

• a form of juxtaposition

jargon

• special language of a profession, field of study, or group

• not easily understood by those outside the field

elegiac

• mourning or commemorating something lost

• expressing sorrow or lamentation

ambivalent

• exhibiting opposing attitudes or feelings simultaneously

• having mixed or contradictory feelings

caustic

• harshly, bitterly critical or sarcastic

• scathing sarcasm

aloof

• not friendly or forthcoming

• cool and distant

ingratiating

• intended to gain approval or favor

• flattering

innocuous

• harmless

• not offensive

pragmatic

• realistic and practical

• dealing with things sensibly

zeal

• great energy or enthusiasm

• strong feeling of interest

condescending

• having shown a feeling of patronizing superiority

strident

• loud and harsh, grating

• commanding attention by a loud or obtrusive quality

equanimity

• mental calmness, composure, and evenness of temper, especially in a difficult situation

provocative

Causing annoyance, anger, desire, or
another strong reaction, especially deliberately

sanctimonious

• making a show of being morally superior to other people

• hypocritical show of religious devotion, piety, righteousness