AP Lang and Comp: All Terms

Ab Ovo

The truest beginning of events in chronological order

Ad hominem

A logical fallacy that involves a personal attack

Allegory

Using characters and story elements symbolically to represent an abstraction

Alliteration

Repetition of consonant sounds in neighboring words

Allusion

A reference to something commonly known

Ambiguity

Multiple meanings of a word, phrase, or passage

Amplification

Repeating a word or expression while adding more detail

Analogy

A comparison between two different things

Anadiplosis

Repetition of a word that ends one clause at the beginning of the next

Anaphora

Repetition of a word or phrase at the beginning of successive phrases

Antecedent

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

Antistrophe

Repetition of the same word or phrase at the end of successive clauses

Antithesis

Opposition or contrast of ideas or words in a balanced construction

Aphorism

A terse statement expressing a general truth or moral principle

Aporia

Expression of doubt by which a speaker appears uncertain

Aposiopesis

A form of ellipse by which a speaker comes to an abrupt halt

Apostrophe

Directly addressing an absent or imaginary person or abstraction

Archaism

Use of an older or obsolete form

Assonance

Repetition of the same vowel sound in close words

Asyndeton

Lack of conjunctions between coordinate phrases, clauses, or words

Atmosphere

The emotional nod created by the entirety of a literary work

Bandwagon

The assumption that the opinion of the majority is always valid

Caricature

A verbal description that exaggerates a person's physical features

Catachresis

The misuse or strained use of words, often for rhetorical effect

Chiasmus

Reversing the order of words in parallel grammatical structures

Circular argumentation

An argument that assumes what it is attempting to prove

Clause

A grammatical unit that contains a subject and a verb

Colloquialism

The use of slang or informalities in speech or writing

Commoratio

Repeating a point using different words

Compounding

Combining two or more words to create a new word

Conceit

A fanciful expression that compares dissimilar objects

Concession

An admission that the opposing side has valid points

Conjunction

A part of speech that connects words, phrases, or clauses

Connotation

The implied or suggested meaning of a word

Declarative sentence

A sentence in the form of a statement

Deduction

Reasoning from the general to the specific

Denotation

The literal dictionary definition of a word

Diacope

Repetition of a word with an intervening word or phrase

Diction

The writer's word choices

Didactic

Intended to teach or instruct

Dirimens Copulatio

Mentioning a balancing fact to prevent one-sidedness

Distinctio

An explicit reference to a particular meaning of a word

Doxa

The domain of opinion or probable knowledge

Ellipses

A set of three periods indicating an omission from a quoted passage

Enallage

Intentionally misusing grammar for characterization or effect

Encomium

A tribute or eulogy glorifying people, events, or ideas

Enumeratio

Listing or detailing the parts of something

Epigraph

A quote at the beginning of a piece of rhetoric that hints at its theme

Epimone

Frequent repetition of a phrase or question

Episteme

In classical rhetoric, the domain of true knowledge

Epizeuxis

Repetition of a word or phrase for emphasis

Ethos

Rhetorical appeal based on the speaker's credibility

Euphemism

A more agreeable substitute for an unpleasant word or concept

Expletive

A word or phrase used to lend emphasis to surrounding words

Extended metaphor

A metaphor developed at great length

False authority

Using famous names to persuade instead of evidence or proof

Figurative language

Writing that is not meant to be taken literally

Figure of speech

A device used to produce figurative language

Fragment

An incomplete sentence

Generic conventions

Traditions for each genre that define its unique features

Genre

The major category into which a literary work fits

Gerund

A noun formed from a verb ending in -ing

Guilt by association

Discrediting an idea based on associated people or groups

Hasty generalization

Drawing a conclusion from insufficient evidence

Homily

A serious talk or lecture involving moral or spiritual advice

Hyperbole

Deliberate exaggeration or overstatement

Hypophora

Asking a question and then answering it

Illocutionary force

The speaker's intention when delivering an utterance

Imagery

Sensory details or figurative language used to describe and represent

Imperative sentence

A sentence that gives advice, instructions, or expresses a request or command

Induction

Reasoning from specific instances to a general conclusion

Inference

Drawing a reasonable conclusion from presented information

Infinitive Phrase

A phrase that starts with an infinitive verb

Interrogative sentence

A sentence that asks a question

Invective

An emotionally violent verbal denunciation or attack

Irony

The contrast between what is stated and what is meant

Juxtaposition

The comparison of two or more objects or ideas side by side

Kenning

A metaphoric compound word or phrase used as a synonym

Litote

Understatement that affirms a point by denying its opposite

Logos

Rhetorical appeals based on logic or reasoning

Loose sentence

A sentence in which the main idea comes first, followed by dependent units

Metabasis

A brief statement summarizing what has been said and what will follow

Metaphor

Implied comparison of unlike things

Metonymy

Using a closely associated term to represent another term

Mood

The prevailing emotional atmosphere of a work

Narrative

The telling of a story or an account of events

Nonce word

A word coined or used for a special occasion

Onomatopoeia

The use of words that imitate natural sounds

Oxymoron

A figure of speech that combines contradictory terms

Paradox

A statement that appears self-contradictory but contains truth

Parallelism

The grammatical or rhetorical framing of words, phrases, or clauses

Parody

A work that imitates the style or content of another for comic effect

Pathos

An emotional appeal used in rhetoric

Pedantic

Words, phrases, or tone that is overly scholarly or academic

Periodic sentence

A sentence that presents its central meaning at the end

Personification

Endowing concepts or objects with human attributes or emotions

Phrase

A group of words that does not contain a subject and a verb

Phronesis

Prudence and practical wisdom in classical rhetoric

Ploce

Repetition of a word with a new or more specific sense

Polysyndeton

Repetition of conjunctions in a series of words, phrases, or clauses