AP Lang Vocab Examples

Consonance

And each slow dusk a drawing-down of blinds. The "d" sound and the "s" sound A Quietness distilled As Twilight long begun, Or Nature spending with herself Sequestered Afternoon— the "n" sound

Antecedent

And still more, later flowers for the BEES, Until they think warm days will never cease, For Summer has o'er-brimmed their clammy cell. JESSE bit her lip.

Novel

The Hunger Games Grapes of Wrath Maze Runner

Repetition

"...government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall perish from the earth." "A horse is a horse, of course, of course, And no one can talk to a horse of course That is, of course, unless the horse is the famous Mister Ed." I looked upon the rotting sea, And drew my eyes away; I looked upon the rotting deck, And there the dead men lay.

Denotation

"And on a day we meet to walk the line And set the wall between us once again. We keep the wall between us as we go. To each the boulders that have fallen to each." Wall- literal meaning is a physical boundary

Narrative

"Animal Farm" by George Orwell "Faerie Queen" by Edmund Spenser

Pedantic

"At the beep please leave your name, number and a brief justification for the ontological necessity of modern man's existential dilemma and we'll get back to you." Sarah insisted that her bridesmaids all wear not only the same dresses, shoes, and jewelry in her wedding, but also the exact same hairstyle and makeup, even though the bridesmaids had very different hair types and skin colorings.

Chiasmus

"Bad men live that they may eat and drink, whereas good men eat and drink that they may live." "Do I love you because you're beautiful? Or are you beautiful because I love you?"

Clause

"Because I practice hard, my AP scores were high." (Dependent) (Independent)

Epanalepsis

"Buster is deeply concerned to promote the health and wellbeing of Buster." "Next time there won't be a next time." "Music I heard with you was more than music."

Epigram

"Experience is the name everyone gives to his mistakes." "Both robb'd of air, we both lie in one ground Both whom one fire had burnt, one water drown'd."

Syllogism

"Flavius: Have you forgot me, sir? Timon: Why dost ask that? I have forgot all men; Then, if thou grant'st thou'rt a man, I have forgot thee." "All love is wonder; if we justly do Account her wonderful, why not lovely too?" All mammals are warm blooded. Whales are mammals. Therefore whales are warm blooded.

Anadiplosis

"He gave his life; life was all he could give." "For Lycidas is dead, dead ere his prime, Young Lycidas and hath not left his peer."

Stream of Consciousness

"He is young Leopold, as in a retrospective arrangement, a mirror within a mirror (hey, presto!), he beholdeth himself. That young figure of then is seen, precious manly, walking on a nipping morning from the old house in Clambrassil to the high school, his book satchel on him bandolier wise, and in it a goodly hunk of wheaten loaf, a mother's thought." These lines reveal the thoughts of Bloom. He thinks of the younger Bloom. The self-reflection is achieved by the flow of thoughts that takes him back to his past.

Cacophony

"I detest war because cause of war is always trivial." 'Twas brillig, and the slithy toves Did gyre and gimble in the wabe; All mimsy were the borogoves,an And the mome raths outgrabe. "Beware the Jabberwock, my son! The jaws that bite, the claws that catch! Beware the Jubjub bird, and shun The frumious Bandersnatch!"

Point of View

"I felt like I was getting drowned with shame and disgrace." "Sometimes you cannot clearly discern between anger and frustration." "Mr. Stewart is a principled man. He acts by the book and never lets you deceive him easily."

Allusion

"I was surprised his nose was not growing like Pinocchio's." "He was a real Romeo with the ladies."

Rhetorical Question

"If Mr. Ferchoff is always fair, as you have said, why did he refuse to listen to Mr. Baldwing's arguments?" Shylock: "If you prick us, do we not bleed? If you tickle us, do we not laugh? If you poison us, do we not die? And if you wrong us, shall we not revenge?"

Ellipsis

"If possible" for "If it is possible" "His brow was furrowed, his mouth peevish."

Antimetabole

"If you fail to plan, you plan to fail." "If you can't be with the one you love, love the one you're with."

Extended Metaphor

"It never takes longer than a few minutes, when they get together, for everyone to revert to the state of nature, like a party marooned by a shipwreck. That's what a family is. Also the storm at sea, the ship, and the unknown shore. And the hats and the whiskey stills that you make out of bamboo and coconuts. And the fire that you light to keep away the beasts." Writer has compared "family" with a "shipwreck" "But soft! What light through yonder window breaks? It is the East, and Juliet is the sun! Arise, fair sun, and kill the envious moon, Who is already sick and pale with grief." Comparing Juliet to the sun

Imagery

"My heart is a singing bird" It was dark and dim in the forest. The fresh and juicy orange are very cold and sweet.

Metaphor

"My heart is a singing bird." "He wolfed his food." "She is a walking dictionary."

Anaphora

"My life is my purpose. My life is my goal. My life is my inspiration." "O LORD, rebuke me not in thine anger, neither chasten me in thy hot displeasure. Have mercy upon me, O LORD; for I am weak: O LORD, heal me; for my bones are vexed. My soul is also sore vexed: but thou, O LORD, how long?"

Personification

"Now sleeps the crimson petal, now the white." "Time's cruel hand." The words appeared to leap off of the paper as she read the story

Conceit

"Oh stay! three lives in one flea spare Where we almost, yea more than married are. This flea is you and I, and this Our marriage-bed and marriage-temple is" In the above lines, the poet tells his darling that she has no reason to deny him sexually as the flea has sucked blood from both them and their blood has mingled in its gut, so the flea has become their "wedding bed", though they are not married yet.

Homily

"One of the central beliefs of Christianity is that Jesus will return in glory. In spite of the fact that the Gospels tell us we do not know the day or the hour, some Christians decorate their automobiles with signs that declare "Jesus is Coming Soon!" It seems to me that we spend far too much time concentrating on this. Someday Jesus will return and the end will come. However, it does not really matter when that will happen--whether it is soon or centuries from now. What really matters is how we get there--what we do with this life."

Parable

"The Emperor's New Clothes" in a book "Fairy Tales Told for Children." The author tells about the life of a silly and vain emperor, whom two cheaters approached, pretending to be artists. Good Samaritan in the holy Bible. Gospel of Luke (10:29-37) describes that there was a traveler (may be a Jew), whom some people had robbed and beaten alongside the road and left him.

Juxtaposition

"The apparition of these face sin the crowd;/ pedals on a wet, black bough." It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness - A Tales of Two Cities by Charles Dickens

Prose

"The woods are lovely, dark and deep. But I have promises to keep, And miles to go before I sleep, And miles to go before I sleep." vs "The woods look lovely against the setting darkness and as I gaze into the mysterious depths of the forest, I feel like lingering here longer. However, I have pending appointments to keep and much distance to cover before I settle in for the night or else I will be late for all of them."

Hyperbole

"This book weighs a ton." "I am so hungry I could eat a horse."

Soliloquy

"To be, or not to be-that is the question: Whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune ...................................................." (Hamlet by William Shakespeare) Hamlet is in a state of mind that only Shakespeare can describe through his magnificent pen. "O Romeo, Romeo! Wherefore art thou Romeo? Deny thy father and refuse thy name; Or, if thou wilt not, be but sworn my love, And I'll no longer be a Capulet." Juliet was thinking aloud about the traditional enmity between Romeo's clan and her family, expressing her hopelessness about the success of their love.

Elegy

"With the farming of a verse Make a vineyard of the curse, Sing of human unsuccess In a rapture of distress; In the deserts of the heart Let the healing fountain start, In the prison of his days Teach the free man how to praise." (In Memory of W. B. Yeats, by W. H. Auden) (O Captain! My Captain!, by Walt Whitman) Whitman wrote this elegy for Abraham Lincoln (16th president of the United States).

Analogy

"Writing a book of poetry is like dropping a rose petal down the Grand Canyon and waiting for the echo." - Don Marquis "I am to dancing what Roseanne is to singing and Donald Duck to motivational speeches. I am as graceful as a refrigerator falling down a flight of stairs." - Leonard Pitts

Assonance

"cry" and "side" have same vowel sound "Try to light the fire" "It beats . . . as it sweeps . . . as it cleans!"

Literal/Figurative

"screaming headlines" they are not actually screaming the real meaning is that they stand out and catch your eye

Metonym

"the white house" of the "president" The White House will be announcing the decision around noon today. Hand - for help Dish - for an entire plate of food

Semantics

A child's alphabet block could be described as a wooden cube, learning aid, toy or block. The verb motion can mean walk, run, fall, plod, hurry or fly.

Anathema

After the world learned of his heinous crimes, the dictator was considered an _____. While he presented himself as a godly man, the priest committed several unethical acts that made him an _______ to members of his congregation.

Device

Cacophony, Allegory, Hyperbole, Onomatopoeia, ect.

Invective

Calling a person a chicken when they are unwilling to jump off the top of a building. Accusing someone who you believe was dishonest of being a filthy liar.

Allegory

The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe; Aslan represents Christ and Edmond represents Judas. The Crucible represents McCarthyism.

Epitaph

Dust thou art, to dust returnest, was not spoken of the soul. (Longfellow) He hath awakened from the dream of life. (Shelley) A mother kind, a wife so dear constant friend lies buried here. We mourn her loss while here we stay. And hope to meet in bless someday.

Ambiguity

Each of us saw her duck - It is not clear whether the word "duck" refers to an action of ducking or a duck that is a bird. The passerby helps dog bite victim - Is the passerby helping a dog bite someone? Or is he helping a person bitten by a dog? It's not clear.

Didactic

George Orwell's "Animal Farm" is a tale that uses animals on a farm to teach the overthrow of the last of the Russian Tsars, Nicholas-II and exposes the evil of the Communist Revolution of Russia before WWII. John Bunyan's "Pilgrim's Progress" is one of the best examples in the form of spiritual allegory. The poem teaches a religious and spiritual journey of a man on the way to deliverance.

Satire

Gulliver's Travels makes fun of the aspects of the English society and Animal Farm make fun of the Russian Revolution

Balanced Sentence

He maketh me to lie down in green pastures; he leadeth me beside the still waters. "The novel concentrates on character; the film intensifies the violence."

Parallelism

He was walking, running, and jumping for joy. I learned how to swim, to play tennis, and to ride a horse.

Connotation

Home suggests family, comfort and security. Pushy refers to someone loud-mouthed and irritating. "Shall I Compare Thee to a Summer's Day" Here, the phrase "a Summer's Day" implies the fairness of his beloved. Similarly, John Donne says in his poem "The Sun Rising":

Extended Parallelism

I photographed the living things of the Mojave Desert: cactus flowers in yellow bloom, an indigo bush with dark blue flowers, kangaroo rats hopping frantically over the sand, a vulture circling over head, a rattlesnake basking in the sun.

Sarcasm

I'm trying to imagine you with a personality. I work 40 hours a week to be this poor. Is it time for your medication or mine? Well, this day was a total waste of makeup. Whatever kind of look you were going for, you missed. Not the brightest crayon in the box now, are we? Nice perfume. Must you marinate in it? Earth is full. Go home. Suburbia: where they tear out the trees and then name streets after them. This isn't an office. It's Hell with fluorescent lighting. I majored in liberal arts. Will that be for here or to go? Don't bother me. I'm living happily ever after.

Inverted Order of a Sentence

In California grow oranges. Rewrite each sentence in natural order. Around that corner is my favorite store.

Split order of a Sentence

In California oranges grow. Up the tree the squirrel ran. In the bushes the girl hid.

Motif

In Mark Twain's "The Adventure of Huckleberry Finn", we see several themes that support the central idea of the narrative. The idea of childhood gives the novel a lighter tone and makes it enjoyable to read In Shakespeare's Hamlet, we find a recurring idea of incest accompanied by incestuous desires of some characters

Anticlimax

In Monty Python and The Holy Grail, the film builds to a point where the Knights and the French seem about to do battle. If the Knights can get into the castle, they will get the grail, and their quest is over. But, a policeman comes and arrests King Arthur. The ending of the games in The Hunger Games. Katniss and Peeta prepare to die together rather than kill each other. Just before they can eat the berries and defy the Capitol, the game-makers end the games.

Irony

In The Crucible all Abigail wanted was John Proctor, but her shenanigans resulted in his death. A man who is a traffic cop gets his license suspended for unpaid parking tickets. If you are playing blackjack chances are you will be up (making money) for awhile, and then just when you thought things were going well, you lose it all.

Bathos

MARY: John - once we had something that was pure, and wonderful, and good. What's happened to it? JOHN: You spent it all. When Mary says "something pure and wonderful", she is actually referring to the deep, sacred, noble form of love. However, the description is vague enough for John to manipulate.

Figurative Language

Metaphor, Simile, Personification, Hyperbole, Symbolism Alright, the sky misses the sun at night. The poorest man is the richest, and the rich are poor. Hear the mellow wedding bells. - Edgar Allen Poe Out of reach, I pull out with a screech. I move fast like a cheetah on the Serengeti. Her head was spinning from all the new information. The toast jumped out of the toaster. I'm so hungry I could eat a horse. The Sea lashed out in anger at the ships, unwilling to tolerate another battle. The Redcoats are coming! I've told you a million times to clean your room!

Periodic Sentence

That morning, after a turbulent flight and some exciting experiences, we reached Edmonton. In spite of heavy snow and cold temperatures, the game continued. "Out of the bosom of the Air, Out of the cloud-folds of her garment shaken, Over the woodlands brown and bare, Over the harvest-fields forsaken, Silent and soft, and slow, Descends the snow."

Natural Order of a Sentence

Oranges grow in California. The floundering ship sank beneath the waves.

Euphemism

Passed away instead of died Put to sleep instead of euthanize Earthly remains instead of corpse

Myth

Prometheus, Zeus, Perseus, Odysseus, Greek Gods

Archetype

The Hero: He or she is a character who predominantly exhibits goodness and struggles against evil in order to restore harmony and justice to society e.g. Beowulf, Hercules, D'artagnan from "The Three Musketeers" etc. The Mentor: His or her task is to protect the main character. It is through the wise advice and training of a mentor that the main character achieves success in the world e.g. Gandalf in "The Lords of Rings", Parson Adams in Fielding's "Joseph Andrews", and Senex in L'Engle's "A Wind in the Door" etc.

Alliteration

She sells sea shells. Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers.

Inference/ Infer

Sheldon Cooper: I took another look at the board, and I realized you were right. Raj Koothrappali: So you were wrong. Sheldon Cooper: I'm not saying that. Raj Koothrappali: That's the only logical assumption. Sheldon Cooper: I'm still not saying it. The floor is covered in shreds of newspaper and Susan's dog has newsprint on his paws. It can be assumed that Susan's dog ate the newspaper.

Euphony

Success is counted sweetest By those who ne'er succeed. To comprehend a nectar Requires sorest need.Not one of all the purple host Who took the flag to-day Can tell the definition, So clear, of victory, As he, defeated, dying, On whose forbidden ear The distant strains of triumph Break, agonized and clear! For example, "s", "v" and "f" sounds are running throughout the poem. Such words are melodic in nature, hence they produce pleasing sounds. "Courage!" he said, and pointed toward the land, "This mounting wave will roll us shoreward soon." In the afternoon they came unto a land In which it seemed always afternoon. All round the coast the languid air did swoon, Breathing like one that hath a weary dream. Full-faced above the valley stood the moon; And like a downward smoke, the slender stream Along the cliff to fall and pause and fall did seem.

Climax

The death of Romeo and Juliet. Peeta and Katniss agree to eat the poison berries.

Declarative Sentence

The king is sick. I am bored. She is tired.

Aphorism

The simplest questions are the hardest to answer. [Northrop Frye] Words are, of course, the most powerful drug used by mankind. [Rudyard Kipling]

Simple Sentence

The singer bowed to her audience. Joe waited for the train. I looked for them all day.

Compound Sentence

The singer bowed to the audience, but she sang no encores. I really want to go to work, but I am too sick to drive.

Compound-Complex Sentence

The singer bowed while the audience applauded, but she sang no encores. "The Druids used mistletoe in ceremonies of human sacrifice, but most of all the evergreen became a symbol of fertility because it flourished in winter when other plants withered."

Fable

The tortoise and the hare The goose with the golden eggs

Simile

The warrior fought like a lion. He was as smart as Einstein. "I would have given anything for the power to soothe her frail soul, tormenting itself in its invincible ignorance like a small bird beating about the cruel wires of a cage."

Atmosphere

The woman raised her hands and stared at them; stared through them. Her voice was soft but tense. "Blood on his hands." Her own hands were clean and pale. When we read these lines, they immediately bring to our mind an emotional response and draw our attention. Once upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered, weak and weary, Over many a quaint and curious volume of forgotten lore - While I nodded, nearly napping, suddenly there came a tapping, As of someone gently rapping, rapping at my chamber door - "Tis some visitor," I muttered, "tapping at my chamber door - Only this and nothing more." (The Raven by Edgar Allen Poe) In this excerpt, the experience of readers is suspenseful and exciting while anticipating horror due to feelings within the narrative.

Litotes

They do not seem the happiest couple around. "I am not unaware how the productions of the Grub Street brotherhood have of late years fallen under many prejudices." "Indeed, it is not uncommon for slaves even to fall out and quarrel among themselves about the relative goodness of their masters, each contending for the superior goodness of his own over that of the others."

Rhetoric

When at a restaurant, the server suggests, "Can I add some of our delicious sweet potato fries to your entree for a dollar more?" An advertisement for a food product for children that espouses that "Moms who love their children, buy [name of product]" uses this by persuading parents that not buying that brand of product may imply they do no not care as much for their children.

Attitude

To kneel in attitude of prayer.

Parody

Vampire Sucks makes fun of Twilight Detergent instead of Divergent The Hungry Games instead of the Hunger Games

Loose Sentence

We reached Edmonton/ that morning/ after a turbulent flight/ and some exciting experiences. I could tell my mother was upset/ from her tapping foot/ and her stern expression.

Pun

When Mercutio is bleeding to death and says, "Ask for me tomorrow, and you shall find me a grave man." I was struggling to figure out how lightning works then it struck me.

Shift

When a character hates something or someone at the beginning of the piece, but then grows to like it at the end.

Apostrophe

William Wordsworth addresses John Milton as he writes, "Milton, thou shouldst be living at this hour: England hath need of thee." "Is this a dagger which I see before me, The handle toward my hand? Come, let me clutch thee! I have thee not, and yet I see thee still." In his mental conflict before murdering King Duncan, Macbeth has a strange vision of a dagger and talks to it as if it were another person.

Dirge

Winter: BY ROBERT BURNS The wintry west extends his blast, And hail and rain does blaw; Or, the stormy north sends driving forth The blinding sleet and snaw: While tumbling brown, the burn comes down, And roars frae bank to brae; And bird and beast in covert rest, And pass the heartless day. The sweeping blast, the sky o'ercast, The joyless winter-day, Let others fear, to me more dear Than all the pride of May: The tempest's howl, it soothes my soul, My griefs it seems to join; The leafless trees my fancy please, Their fate resembles mine! Thou Pow'r Supreme, whose mighty scheme These woes of mine fulfil, Here, firm, I rest, they must be best, Because they are Thy will! Then all I want (O, do Thou grant This one request of mine!) Since to enjoy Thou dost deny, Assist me to resign.

Antithesis

You are going; I am staying. Joy is the ___ of sorrow. "To err is human; to forgive divine."

Paradox

You can save money by spending it. You shouldn't go in the water until you know how to swim. In George Orwell's Animal Farm, the words "All animals are equal, but some are more equal than others" are part of the cardinal rules. Clearly this statement does not make logical sense. However, the point of this is to point out a truth, even if the statements contradict each othe

Complex Sentence

You said that you would tell the truth. Because my coffee was too cold, I heated it in the microwave.

Colloquial/ Colloquialism

a bunch of numpties - a group of idiots to bamboozle - to deceive go bananas - go insane or be very angry wanna - want to gonna - going to y'all - you all go nuts - go insane or be very angry look blue -look sad buzz off - go away

Language

an invitation to a graduation may be more formal, but a biology text may be more scientific and clinical

Cliche

blushing bride; clinging vine are this that describe people Brave as a lion; All is fair in love and war;"Don't get your knickers in a twist"

Onomatopoeia

buzz, clang, hiss, buzz, etc.

Style

diction, sentence structure, figurative language, and various sound patterns enter into this

Diction

formal, informal, ornate, plain "Heard melodies are sweet, but those unheard Are sweeter: therefore, ye soft pipes, play on" Notice the use of formal "ye" instead of informal "you"

Mood

indicative: "Tony hit the ball." imperative: "Tony, hit the ball!" subjunctive: "If I were you..." or "It is required that the applicant be under 21."

Sentence Structure

inverted order of an interrogative ques readers to question and creates tension Natural order short: more emphatic or passionate long: more thoughtful

Rhetorical Modes/ or Form of Discourse

narration, description, exposition, and argumentation.

Genre

poetry, drama, novel, short story, nonfiction, etc.

Asyndeton

smile, shake hands, part "This is the villain among you who deceived you, who cheated you, who meant to betray you completely......."

Epistles

the letters of Paul the Apostle (the Pauline ______ incorporated into the Bible), which greatly aided the growth of Christianity into a world religion

Oxymoron

thunderous silence, sweet sorrow, jumbo shrimp