AP Literary Terms II

Onomatopoeia

Words whose sounds relay their meanings

Pathos

Ability to call forth feelings of pity, compassion

Periodic construction

Main clauses put at the end of the sentence for emphasis

Syllepsis

Use of a verb to suggest two totally different meanings

Alliteration

Repetition of beginning consonant sounds

Metonymy

Word or object substituted for meaning of related concept

Epigraph

Quote or motto at the beginning of a work

Epithet

Descriptive phrase substituted for a thing/person

Conceit

Extended metaphor

Impressionism

Type of writing/art that relates the impressions of the author rather than reality

Irony

Contrast between appearance and reality, three kinds

Elegy

Sad, mournful poem

Aphorism

Short statement expressing a truth

Discourse

Written or spoken expression

Resolution

Explains the outcome of a conflict

Fable

Lesson with animals

Epigram

Short, witty saying

Litotes

Technique of denying the opposite of what you want to say

Synecdoche

Figure of speech in which the part is substituted for the whole

Colloquialism

Informal conversation of a region