Non-Negotiable Terms in AP Language

A collection of vocabulary terms and their definitions relevant to AP Language.

Ad Hominem

Directed to or appealing to feelings or prejudices instead of to intellect or reason.

Allegory

Any writing in verse or in prose that has a double meaning; an extended metaphor in which persons, abstract ideas, or events represent not only themselves on the literal level, but they also stand for something else on the symbolic level.

Alliteration

Repetition of the same sound at the beginning of words over a series of words.

Allusion

A reference in literature to an often known person, place, event, work, or another passage of literature, often without explicit identification.

Anaphora

A rhetorical device that consists of repeating a sequence of words at the beginnings of neighboring clauses.

Anecdote

A brief narrative often used to illustrate an idea or make a point.

Antithesis

A rhetorical opposition or contrast of ideas by means of a grammatical arrangement of words, clauses, or sentences.

Apollonian

Refers to the most noble, godlike qualities of human nature and behavior.

Apostrophe

A locution that addresses a person or personified thing not present.

Archetype

An abstract or ideal conception of a type; a perfectly typical example.

Assonance

The repetition of two or more vowel sounds in a group of words in prose or poetry.

Audience

The spectators, listeners, and intended readers of a writing, performance, or speech.

Bombast

Inflated, pretentious language.

Cacophony

Grating, inharmonious sounds.

Colloquialism

A word or phrase that is not formal or literary, typically used in ordinary conversation.

Connotation

The suggested or implied meaning of a word or phrase.

Consonance

The repetition of two or more consonant sounds in a group of words or a unit of speech or writing.

Deductive Reasoning

A method of reasoning where specific definitions, conclusions, and theorems are drawn from general principles.

Denotation

The dictionary definition of a word.

Diction

The choice of words in oral and written discourse.

Dionysian

Refers to the sensual, pleasure-seeking impulses.

Elegy

A poem or prose that laments or meditates on a death.

Epic

A narrative poem that tells of the adventures and exploits of a hero.

Epiphany

The point in a work of literature where a character has a sudden insight that changes his or her understanding.

Ethical Appeals (Ethos, Pathos, Logos)

Ethos: authority of a speaker; Pathos: emotional appeal; Logos: logic used to support a claim.

Euphemism

A mild or less negative usage for a harsh or blunt term.

Euphony

Pleasing, harmonious sounds.

Fallacy/Fallacious Reasoning

An incorrect belief based on faulty data or logic.

Farce

A comedy that contains extravagant and nonsensical disregard of seriousness.

Hubris

Excessive pride that often affects tone.

Hyperbole

Overstatement; gross exaggeration for rhetorical effect.

Inductive Reasoning

A method of reasoning in which specific facts or examples are used to make generalizations.

Inversion (Anastrophe)

A literary technique in which the normal order of words is reversed.

Irony

A mode of expression where the intended meaning is the opposite of what is stated.

Dramatic Irony

When the audience knows more about a situation than a character.

Situational Irony

Incongruity between expectations of something to happen and what actually happens.

Verbal Irony

A discrepancy between the literal meaning of words and the true meaning of a situation.

Juxtaposition

Side-by-side placement of words, phrases, or ideas, often to produce a specific effect.

Litotes

A form of understatement using the negative of the contrary for emphasis.

Malapropism

Confused use of words where the appropriate word is replaced by one with a similar sound but different meaning.

Maxim (Adage, Aphorism)

A saying or proverb expressing common wisdom or truth.

Metaphor

A figure of speech that compares unlike objects.

Simile

A figure of speech that compares unlike objects using 'like' or 'as'.

Metonymy

A figure of speech that uses the name of one thing to represent something else with which it is associated.

Mood

The emotional tone or prevailing atmosphere in a work of literature.

Motif

A phrase, idea, or event that through repetition serves to unify or convey a theme.

Objective (adj.)

Relating to facts and reality, as opposed to personal feelings.

Onomatopoeia

The use of words whose sounds suggest their meaning.

Paradox

A statement that seems self-contradictory but is nevertheless true.

Parallel Structure

The structure required for expressing two or more grammatical elements of equal rank.

Pathetic Fallacy

Faulty reasoning that ascribes human feelings to nature.

Persona

The role or façade that a character assumes to an audience.

Personification

A figure of speech in which objects and animals are given human characteristics.

Plot

The interrelationship among events in a story.

Point of View-1ST

The mode of narration using 'I' or 'we'.

Point of View-2ND

The mode of narration using 'you'.

Point of View-3RD Limited

The mode of narration where the narrator does not know all characters' thoughts.

Point of View-3RD Omniscient

The mode of narration where the narrator knows all characters' inner thoughts.

Prose

Any discourse that is not poetry.

Purpose

The reason an author decides to write about a specific topic.

Realism/Naturalism

The depiction of people and events as they really are without idealization.

Repetition

Reuse of the same words or ideas for rhetorical effect.

Rhetoric

The language of a work and its style used to convince or sway an audience.

Rhetorical Question

A question to which the audience already knows the answer; asked for effect.

Rhyme

The repetition of the same sound at the end of a word.

Rhythm

The pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables in speech or writing.

Sarcasm

A sharp, caustic attitude conveyed in words; differs from irony.

Satire

A literary style used to ridicule or mock for the purpose of inducing change.

Sensory Detail

Imagery involving sight, sound, touch, smell, and taste.

Setting

An environment that consists of time, place, and social circumstances.

Subjective (adj.)

Relating to personal feelings as opposed to facts.

Symbolism

The use of one object to evoke ideas and associations not literally part of it.

Synecdoche

A device where a part represents the whole, or vice versa.

Syntax

Organization of language into meaningful structure.

Theme

The main idea or meaning upon which an essay or discourse is built.

Thesis

The main idea of a piece of discourse; a statement the author wishes to advance.

Claim

A statement that asserts something to be true.

Evidence

Paraphrasing or quotations presented to persuade readers.

Concession

A literary device acknowledging a point made by one's opponent.

Tone

The author’s attitude toward the subject being written about.

Understatement

A restrained statement that departs from what could be said.

Voice

The distinctive style or manner of expression of an author or narrator.