AP Rhetorical Terms and Devices Vocabulary

A comprehensive vocabulary set containing definitions of literary devices, syntax patterns, rhetorical strategies, figures of speech, logical fallacies, and modes of rhetoric covered in the AP Rhetorical Handbook.

Style

The manner of expression of a particular writer, produced by choice of words, grammatical structures, use of literary devices, and all the possible parts of language use.

Diction

An author’s choice of words.

Connotation

An idea or meaning suggested by or associated with a word or thing.

Denotation

The literal definition of a word.

Pedantic

Characterized by a narrow, often ostentatious concern for book learning and formal rules.

Simple (Style)

Style characterized as pure, easy, plain, and basic.

Monosyllabic

Having one syllable.

Polysyllabic

Having more than one syllable.

Euphonious

Pleasing or agreeable to the ear.

Cacophonic

Discordant, unpleasant sounding, jarring.

Literal Language

Language that means exactly what is said; what you see from language, tone, symbol, etc.

Figurative Language

Saying one thing but meaning another; what you get from language, tone, symbol, etc.

Active Voice

Sentence structure where the subject is performing or causing the action rather than being in a state of being.

Passive Voice

Sentence structure where the subject is the object of the action or the effect of the verb.

Overstated

Exaggerated.

Understated

Expressed with restraint or a lack of emphasis.

Colloquial

Informal, conversational language.

Formal

Proper language.

Non-Standard (Slang/Jargon)

Language not adhering to the standard, usually associated with a language variety used by uneducated speakers or socially disfavored groups.

Alliteration

The recurrence of initial consonant sounds, usually limited to two words.

Onomatopoeia

The use of words which in their pronunciation suggest their meaning.

Syntax

The way in which linguistic elements (words and phrases) are arranged to form grammatical structure.

Basic Sentence Order

Sentence structure arranged as Subject + verb + object.

Interrupted Sentence

A sentence that is interrupted by a parenthetical aside.

Inverted Sentence Pattern

A sentence that begins with a part of speech other than the subject, used to delay revealing the topic, create tension, or connect ideas.

Listing Sentence

A sentence with multiple phrases that create a list.

Cumulative / Loose Sentence

A sentence that begins with the subject and verb and adds modifying elements at the end.

Periodic Sentence

A sentence that opens with modifiers and withholds the subject and verb until the end.

Antithesis

Establishing a clear, contrasting relationship between two ideas by joining them together or juxtaposing them, often in parallel structure.

Chiasmus

A crossing parallelism where the second part of a grammatical construction is balanced or paralleled by the first part, only in reverse order.

Balanced Sentence

Expressing parallel or like ideas, often compound.

Declarative Sentence

A sentence that declares or states something.

Imperative Sentence

A sentence that commands, requests, or instructs, with the subject most often being an unstated but understood 'you'.

Exclamatory Sentence

A sentence that expresses strong emotion.

Interrogative Sentence

A sentence that asks a question.

Simple Sentence

A sentence structure containing at least one subject and at least one predicate that can stand alone as a complete thought.

Compound Sentence

A sentence structure containing two or more independent clauses.

Complex Sentence

A sentence structure containing one independent clause and one or more dependent clauses.

Compound-Complex Sentence

A sentence structure containing two or more independent clauses and one or more dependent clauses.

Ellipsis

A rhetorical figure in which one or more words are omitted.

Asyndeton

The omission of a conjunction from a list, giving the effect of unpremeditated multiplicity.

Anadiplosis

A rhetorical trope formed by repeating the last word of one phrase, clause, or sentence at or very near the beginning of the next.

Anaphora

Repetition of a word or phrase at the beginning of successive phrases, clauses, or sentences.

Epistrophe

The repetition of the same word or words at the end of successive phrases, clauses, or sentences; counterpart to anaphora.

Polysyndeton

The use of a conjunction between each word, phrase, or clause; structurally the opposite of asyndeton.

Parenthetical Aside

Consists of a word, phrase, or whole sentence inserted as an aside in the middle of another sentence.

Colon

Punctuation mark (:) used to divide distinct but related sentence components where the second elaborates on the first, or to introduce a list, quotation, or speech.

Semi-Colon

A punctuation mark (;) which connects two independent parts of a sentence.

Dashes

A punctuation mark (—) used to indicate a sudden break in thought or to set off parenthetical material.

Genre

A recognizable and established category of written work employing common conventions.

Allegory

A form of extended metaphor in which objects and persons in a narrative are equated with meanings that lie outside the narrative itself.

Autobiography

The biography of a person written by that person.

Biography

An account of a person’s life as written or told by another.

Chronicle

An extended account of historical events without interpretation or comment.

Diary

A daily written record of usually personal experiences and observations.

Essay

A short literary composition on a single subject, usually presenting the personal view of the author in an analytic or interpretive manner.

Fiction

A literary work based on the imagination and not necessarily on fact.

Non-fiction

A work that draws its information from history or fact, rather than the imagination.

Parody

A literary form in which the style of an author or particular work is mocked in its style for the sake of comic effect.

Prose

Writing distinguished from poetry by its greater variety of rhythm and its closer resemblance to the patterns of everyday speech.

Satire

A literary work which exposes and ridicules human vices or folly as moral criticism directed against social wrongs.

Sermon

An oration by a prophet or member of the clergy.

Stream-Of-Consciousness

A technique that records the multifarious thoughts and feelings of a character without regard to logical or narrative sequence.

Allusion

An indirect or passing reference to some event, person, place, or artistic work, relying on the reader's familiarity with what is mentioned.

Ambiguity

Something of doubtful meaning or an expression whose meaning cannot be determined from its context.

Anachronism

The representation of someone as existing or something as happening in other than chronological, proper, or historical order.

Aphorism

A brief statement which expresses a wise observation on life.

Audience

The people the author is speaking to, including listeners, readers, or onlookers.

Invective

Abuse characterized by tongue-lashing, diatribe, or condemnation.

Juxtaposition

Placing two things side by side, usually to show contrast.

Malapropism

An incorrect usage of a word, usually with comic effect.

Rhetorical Question

A question posed by the speaker or writer not to seek an answer, but to affirm or deny a point simply by asking it.

Sensory Detail

An item used to appeal to the senses such as sight, taste, or touch.

Shift

A general term in linguistics for any slight alteration in a word’s meaning, or the creation of an entirely new word by changing the use of an expression.

Tone

The writer’s attitude toward his reader and his subject, encompassing his mood or moral view.

Point of View

The vantage point from which the narrative is passed from author to the reader.

Theme / Thesis

The message conveyed by a literary work.

Voice

The textual features, such as diction and sentence structure, that convey a writer’s or speaker’s persona.

Analogy

The comparison of two things alike in several respects for the practical purpose of explaining or clarifying an unfamiliar or difficult idea.

Apostrophe

The direct address of a person or personified thing, either present or absent, used to display intense emotion.

Cliché

An expression so often used that its original power has been drained away.

Conceit

An elaborate, usually intellectually ingenious poetic comparison or image.

Epithet

An adjective or adjective phrase appropriately qualifying a subject (noun) by naming a key or important characteristic.

Euphemism

The expression of an unpleasant or embarrassing notion by a more inoffensive substitute.

Hyperbole

Exaggeration used for emphasis.

Imagery

The collection of images within a literary work used to evoke atmosphere, mood, or tension.

Verbal Irony

The contrast between the literal meaning of what is said and what is actually meant.

Situational Irony

An outcome where the result of an action is the reverse of what the actor expected.

Extended Metaphor

A metaphor drawn-out beyond the usual word or phrase to extend throughout a stanza or an entire poem using multiple comparisons.

Metonymy

A figure of speech in which the thing chosen for the metaphorical image is closely associated with (but not an actual part of) the subject.

Oxymoron

A paradox reduced to two words, usually in an adjective-noun or adverb-adjective relationship.

Paradox

A statement that seems untrue on the surface but is true nevertheless.

Personification

The metaphorical representation of an animal or inanimate object as having human attributes.

Pun

A play on words based on different senses of the same word or the similar sound of different words.

Simile

A figure of speech in which two essentially unlike things are compared using 'like' or 'as'.

Synaesthesia

A condition where one type of stimulation evokes the sensation of another, such as describing one sense impression using words for another.

Synecdoche

A figure of speech in which a part of something stands for the whole or the whole stands for a part.

Understatement

Expressing an idea with less emphasis or to a lesser degree than is actual, used for ironic emphasis.

Argument

A way of reasoning where a subject is proved correct or incorrect.

Ethos

A rhetorical appeal to an audience based on the speaker/writer's credibility.