English Unfamiliar Language Features

A comprehensive vocabulary set defining literary devices and language features from the notes.

simile

comparison of two unlike things using like or as

metaphor

comparison of two unlike things by saying that one is the other

dead metaphor

one used so often we longer think of the comparison between objects

mixed metaphor

two or more metaphors used in the same sentence

extended/sustained metaphor

where one image is continued or amplified in two or more lines

personification

a metaphor which gives inanimate objects some feature of human beings

conceit

a particularly logical extended image or series of images

hyperbole

deliberate exaggeration, for serious or comic effect

litotes

deliberate understatement

metonymy ('name change')

the name of something associated with an object is substituted for it

synecdoche

a kind of metonymy where a part or attribute of something is used to signify the whole

allusion

a reference to a well known person/place/work

alliteration

repetition of consonants, especially at the beginning of words

assonance

repitition of identical or related vowel sounds

onomatopoeia

use of words which have sounds that resemble the sounds they describe

rhyme

repetition of the sounds of words usually at the ends of lines of poetry

internal rhyme

within a line of poetry

half-rhyme

where the consonants rhyme but the vowel changes

pun

a play on words with the same sound but different meanings; effect can be humorous or serious

ambiguity

words used with more than one meaning

euphemism

describing something unpleasant in a more tasteful way

circumlocution

saying in a roundabout manner what could be said much more simply

irony

where what is said is the opposite of what is meant

sarcasm

mocking or ironic language intended to insult

dramatic irony

a situation or speech in a novel in which the audience knows facts of which the character is unaware

tragic irony

dramatic irony used to tragic effect; when a character confidently predicts an outcome that comes true but in an unexpected or tragic way

cosmic irony

where tragedy or disaster is unavoidable, despite the efforts to avoid

innuendo

a form of irony which the underlying meaning is suggested/hinted at

cliché

an expression used so often as to have lost any effect in meaning

antithesis

balanced contrast, often of grammatical pattern and meaning

oxymoron

an idea is expressed by means of words or phrases usually considered contradictory

paradox

a statement that seems to contradict itself, to make no sense, but which contains a truth

climax

arrangement of words, phrases, ideas in ascending order of importance

anticlimax

descending order to spoil the effect of climax- often deliberate and for humor

inversion

reversal of natural word order, often for rhythmic purposes in blank verse

transposition

words out of their natural order, often for ththmic purposes in blank verse

repitition

deliberate repeating of a word or idea for emphasis

parallelism

a balance of phrase or clause, with repitition of meaning and/or construction

rhetorical question

a question to which the answer is assumed

motif

frequently recurring, incident or concept in literature; deliberate repetition of a significant phrase in a single work

symbol

that which stands for or suggests something else by reason of relationship/association/convention or accidental resemblance

free verse

poetry with no regular rhythm or rhyme scheme

enjambment

carry over of meaning without pause from one line to the next

couplet

two successive lines of verse, usually rhymed

stanza

a verse of poetry

ballad

a simple narrative poem in short stanzas

lyric

a short poem expressing the writer's own thoughts and emotions

allegory

a narrative which illustrates a moral point by means of an extended metaphor

fable

a story with a secondary meaning as well as a surface one (usually using animals)

parable

a symbolic or allegorical story based on common experience and illustrating a moral point

parody

an amusing, exaggerated imitation of a literary work

satire

literary composition ridiculing vice

epigram

a concise and witty saying