AP Lang Vocab

Imagery - visually descriptive or figurative language, especially in a literary work

Epanalepsis - the repetition of the initial part of a clause or sentence at the end of that same clause or sentence.

Bildungsroman - class of novel that depicts and explores the manner in which the protagonist develops morally and psychologically.

Sarcasm - the use of irony to mock or convey contempt.

Asyndeton - the omission or absence of a conjunction between parts of a sentence.

Nostalgia - a sentimental longing or wistful affection for the past, typically for a period or place with happy personal associations.

Juxtaposition - the fact of two things being seen or placed close together with contrasting effect.

Allegory - a story, poem, or picture that can be interpreted to reveal a hidden meaning, typically a moral or political one.

Irony - the expression of one's meaning by using language that normally signifies the opposite, typically for humorous or emphatic effect.

Metonymy - a concept is referred to by the name of something closely associated with that thing or concept.

Epiphany - a moment of sudden revelation or insight.

Epistrophe - the repetition of a word at the end of successive clauses or sentences.

Diction - the choice and use of words and phrases in speech or writing.

Protagonist - the leading character or one of the major characters in a drama, movie, novel, or other fictional text.

Delayed Sentence - A sentence that withholds its main idea until the end.

Elegy - a poem of serious reflection, typically a lament for the dead.

Antagonist - a person who actively opposes or is hostile to someone or something; an adversary.

Denotation - the literal or primary meaning of a word, in contrast to the feelings or ideas that the word suggests.

Colloquial - (of language) used in ordinary or familiar conversation; not formal or literary.

Eulogy - a speech or piece of writing that praises someone or something highly, typically someone who has just died.

Synecdoche - a figure of speech in which a part is made to represent the whole or vice versa.

Rhetorical Question - a question asked in order to create a dramatic effect or to make a point rather than to get an answer.

Perspective - a particular attitude toward or way of regarding something; a point of view.

Contradiction - a combination of statements, ideas, or features of a situation that are opposed to one another.

Tone - the general character or attitude of a place, piece of writing, situation, etc.

Alliteration - the occurrence of the same letter or sound at the beginning of adjacent or closely connected words.

Antanaclasis - the literary trope in which a single word or phrase is repeated, but in two different senses.

Hyperbole - exaggerated statements or claims not meant to be taken literally.

Expletive - Figure of emphasis in which a single word or short phrase, usually interrupting normal speech, is used to lend emphasis to the words on either side of the expletive.

Polysyndeton - repetition of conjunctions in close succession.