AP Lang Vocab

Abstract Language

Language describing ideas and qualities rather than observable or specific things, people, or places.

Active Voice

The subject of the sentence performs the action.

Ad hominem

A personal attack against an opponent instead of their arguments.

Allegory

A story in which characters and events symbolize qualities or concepts.

Alliteration

The repetition of initial identical consonant sounds.

Allusion

An indirect reference to something with which readers are supposed to be familiar.

Ambiguity

An event or situation that may be interpreted in more than one way.

Analogy

A comparison to a directly parallel case.

Anaphora

Repetition of a word or phrase at the beginning of two or more sentences in a row.

Anecdote

A brief recounting of a relevant episode.

Annotation

Explanatory notes added to a text.

Antecedent

The word or phrase referred to by a pronoun.

Antithesis

Two opposite or contrasting words or ideas.

Aphorism

A terse statement expressing a general truth or moral principle.

Apostrophe

A figure of speech that directly addresses an absent or imaginary person.

Appositive

A word or group of words placed beside a noun to supplement its meaning.

Argumentation

To prove the validity of an idea or point of view through reasoning.

Assonance

Repetition of a vowel sound within two or more words in close proximity.

Causal Relationship

A relationship where one thing results from another.

Clause

A grammatical unit that contains both a subject and a verb.

Colloquial

Ordinary or familiar type of conversation.

Colloquialism

A common or familiar type of saying.

Complex Sentence

A sentence composed of at least one main clause and one subordinate clause.

Concession

Accepting part or all of an opposing viewpoint.

Concrete Language

Language that describes specific, observable things.

Connotation

The associations suggested by a word, beyond its literal meaning.

Consonance

Repetition of a consonant sound within two or more words.

Coordination

Combining sentences/clauses into one single sentence.

Deduction

Moving from general statements to a specific conclusion.

Denotation

The explicit meaning of a word.

Description

To recreate or visually present a person, place, event, or action.

Diction

Word choice, particularly as an element of style.

Didactic

A term used to describe fiction that teaches a specific lesson or moral.

Ellipsis

The deliberate omission of a word for effect.

Emotional Appeal

When a writer appeals to an audience's emotions.

Epigraph

A quotation or aphorism at the beginning of a literary work.

Ethical Appeal

When a writer persuades the audience based on their image.

Euphemism

A more agreeable substitute for generally unpleasant words.

Explication

The act of interpreting or discovering the meaning of a text.

Exposition

To explain and analyze information by presenting an idea.

False Analogy

When two cases are not sufficiently parallel to support a claim.

Figurative Language

Words that evoke reactions but are not accurate literally.

Genre

The major category into which a literary work fits.

Homily

A serious talk or lecture involving moral or spiritual advice.

Hyperbole

Figurative language that exaggerates.

Image

Words that create a picture in the reader's mind.

Induction

Reasoning from premises to a probable conclusion.

Inference/infer

To draw a reasonable conclusion from the information presented.

Interrogative sentence

Sentences incorporating interrogative pronouns.

Invective

An emotionally violent, verbal denunciation using strong language.

Imperative sentence

Issues a command.

Irony

When the opposite of what you expect happens.

Juxtaposition

Placing things side by side for comparison.

Loose Sentence

Complex sentence where the main clause comes first.

Metaphor

A figure of speech using implied comparison of unlike things.

Mood

The atmosphere created by the literature.

Non-sequitur

Statement that does not logically follow another.

Objectivity

An author's stance that distances from personal involvement.

Onomatopoeia

Words that imitate natural sounds.

Oversimplification

When the writer denies the complexity of an idea.

Oxymoron

A rhetorical antithesis; contradictory terms grouped together.

Paradox

A seemingly contradictory statement that is actually true.

Parallelism

Sentence construction where equal grammatical constructions are near each other.

Parenthetical Idea

An idea set off from the rest of the sentence by parentheses.

Parody

An exaggerated imitation of a serious work for humorous purposes.

Passive Voice

The subject of the sentence receives the action.

Pedantic

Observing strict adherence to formal rules at the expense of a wider view.

Periodic Sentence

A sentence where the main idea comes last.

Persona

The fictional mask that tells a story.

Personification

Attributing human qualities to non-human subjects.

Persuasive writing

Argumentation that also urges action.

Predicate Adjective

An adjective that follows a linking verb and modifies the subject.

Predicate Nominative

A noun that renames the subject after a linking verb.

Qualification

Redefining an argument to avoid conflict with an opposing viewpoint.

Refutation

When the writer presents relevant opposing arguments.

Repetition

Reinforcing a point by repeating it.

Rhetoric

The art of effective communication.

Rhetorical Question

Question asked for effect, not for information.

Sarcasm

A bitter, ironically worded comment.

Satire

A work revealing a critical attitude toward life for humorous effect.

Sentence

A group of words expressing a complete thought.

Simple sentence

Contains one independent clause.

Compound sentence

Contains at least two independent clauses.

Complex sentence

Contains one independent clause and at least one dependent clause.

Compound-complex sentence

Contains two or more independent clauses and at least one dependent clause.

Balanced Sentence

One in which two parallel elements are set off against each other.

Loose Sentence

Main idea is introduced at the beginning and modified by less important elements.

Periodic Sentence

When the main idea is not completed until the end of the sentence.

Simile

A figurative usage that compares, often using 'like' or 'as'.

Style

Choices in diction, tone, and syntax that a writer makes.

Subordination

Placing less important ideas in dependent clauses.

Subordinate Clause

A word group that contains both a subject and a verb but cannot stand alone.

Syllogism

A deductive system of formal logic presenting two premises leading to a sound conclusion.

Symbol/symbolism

Anything representing something else, often abstract.

Syntax

Grammatical arrangement of words.

Theme

The central idea or message of a work.

Thesis

The sentence that directly expresses the author's opinion or purpose.

Tone

A writer's attitude toward the subject matter.

Topic Sentence

A sentence that expresses the main point of a paragraph.

Transition

Smooth movement from one paragraph to another.