English Midterm Vocab

savored

adore, delight, love (verb)

repertoire

all the plays, songs, dances, etc. that a performer or group of performers knows and can perform; skills (noun)

edification

an act or process of teaching in a way that improves the mind or character (noun)

dictum

an authoritative pronouncement; judicial assertion (noun)

vigil

an event or period of time when a person or group stays in a place and quietly waits, prays etc. (especially at night) (noun)

logos

appeals to logic and uses facts and statistics to support the speaker's claim

pathos

appeals to the audience's emotions and will often point out the injustice to appeal to the audience

ethos

appeals to the audience's ethics and relies upon the speaker's credibility and authority

syntax

arrangement of words and phrases to create well-formed sentences

bias

attitudes or behaviors based on stereotypes of people

congenital

being such from birth or by nature (adj.)

devoid

being without a usual, typical, or expected attribute or accompaniment (adj.)

connived

brush aside, ignore, disregard, overlook (verb)

serene

calm, hushed, peaceful (adj.)

fractious

causing trouble; hard to manage or control; full of anger and disagreement; mean or cross (adj.)

character mirrors

characters who are alike

character foils

characters who are different in terms of values, traits, and goals

adjacent

close or near; sharing a border, wall, or point (adj.)

impudent

cocky, brassy, rude, sassy, disrespectful (adj.)

corroborating

confirming, confirmational (adj.)

irascible

cranky, crabby, grouchy, energy (adj.)

tyranny

cruel and unfair treatment by people with power over others; a government in which all power belongs to one person; the rule or authority of a tyrant (noun)

claim

defines your paper's goals; supported by evidence, must be argumentative, specific, most important part of your paper

contempt

despisement, misprison (adj.)

piety

devotion to God (noun)

direct characterization

direct statements about appearance and personality

unobtrusive

discreet, unnoticeable (adj.)

unmitigated

downright, flat-out (adj.)

aridity

dryness (noun)

malevolent

evil; harmful (adj.)

hyperbole

exaggerated statement or claim not meant to be taken literally

innate

existing from time a person or animal is born; part of basic nature of something (adj.)

turbulent

explosive, fierce, furious (adj.)

idiom

expressions that should not be interpreted literally; its meaning is figurative and means something quite different from the literal meaning of the phrase

contemptuous

feeling or showing deep hatred or disapproval; feeling or showing contempt (adj.)

imagery

figurative language used to represent objects, actions, and ideas in such a way that it appeals to our physical senses

prowess

great ability or skill (noun)

lament

groan, moan wail - (noun) mourn, grieve, weep - (verb) song expressing sadness - (noun)

quaint

having an old-fashioned or unusual quality or appearance that is usually attractive or appealing (adj.)

recluse

hermit, homebody (noun)

droned

hum, buzzing, murmuring (verb)

contentious

likely to cause people to argue and disagree; involving arguing; willing to argue (adj.)

fanatical

marked by excessive enthusiasm and often intense uncritical devotion; extreme (adj.)

benign

medical; not causing death or serious injury; kind and gentle (adj.)

malignant

medical; very serious, dangerous, evil; likely to grow and spread in a rapid and uncontrolled way that can cause death; dangerous, evil (adj.)

infallible

not capable of being wrong or making mistakes ; certain to work properly or succeed unerring, unfailing (adj.) never wrong

sordid

not clean; filthy, draggled, unclean (adj.)

nebulous

not clear; difficult to see, understand, describe (adj.)

oblivious

not conscious or aware of someone or something (adj.) clueless, ignorant, unaware, incognizant, unacquainted

tentatively

not done with confidence; uncertain and hesitant (adv)

placidly

not easily upset or excited; not moving much: calm and steady

unreliable narrator

not limited to one type but is unreliable and conveys information to the reader which he/she is not aware. Could be because of age, mental reasons, or naive

vapid

not lively or interesting; dull or boring (adj.)

subdued

not strong, loud, intense, etc; tamed, quieted, restrained (adj.)

vivid

of a picture, memory, etc. : seeming like real life because it is very clear, bright, or detailed : very bright in color (adj.) visual, graphic

ecclesiastical

of or relating to the Christian church or clergy or items used in church service (adj.) churchly

indigenous

produced, living, or existing naturally in a particular region or environment (adj.)

enunciated

pronounced, spoke, verbalized (verb)

tranquil

quiet and peaceful (adj.)

morbid

relating to unpleasent subjects (such as death); gruesome, horrible (adj.)

indirect characterization

reveals info about a character and personality through character's thoughts, words, actions; reveals about the character by how others respond to him/her

impertinence

sass, impudence, backchat, cheek, disrespect (noun)

figurative language

saying something other than what is literally meant for effect

fraud

scam, use of dishonest methods to aquire something of value; lie, deception (noun)

stealthy

secretive, shady, sly, sneaky, cunning (adj.)

furtive

shady, sneaky, sly, stealthy (adj.)

temerity

shameless boldness, nerve , audacity (noun)

auspicious

showing or suggesting that future success is likely; favorable (adj.)

vehemently

showing strong and often angry feelings; very emotional; rigorously, fiercely (adv)

ingenuous

simple, innocent (adj.)

caricatures

someone or something or drawing that is exaggerated in a funny or foolish way (noun)

3rd person omniscient

the narrator knows all, sees all, and can explain the thoughts of more than one character. Perspective is not limited to any one character since the narrator is all knowing

3rd person limited

the narrator recounts events as a single character in the story might experience them, but is not part of the story

point of view

the perspective from which the story is told

characterization

the process by which the writer reveals the personality of a character

rectitude

the quality of being honest and morally correct (noun)

ascertaining

to learn or find out something such as information or truth; determining (verb)

assuaged

to make milder or less severe; to calm (verb)

begrudge

to think that someone does not deserve something : to regard (something) as not being earned or deserved : to give or allow (something) in a reluctant or unwilling way (verb) envy, resent

2nd person

told as if you are telling the story : you

1st person narration

told from first hand : I, me, we, us

3rd person

told from outside perspective : he, she, they

gingerly

very cautious or careful (adv.)

purpose

what the author is trying to accomplish : persuade, inform, entertain

theme

what the story teaches readers; the life lesson, meaning, moral, or message about life or human nature that is communicated by a literary work

personification

when human characteristics are given to nonhuman objects

scold

a person who often criticizes other people in an angry way; someone who scolds other people too often (noun)

mood

the general atmosphere created by the author's words : the feeling the reader gets from reading those words

rudiments

1. basic principle or element or fundamental skill 2. something unformed or undeveloped; characteristics, qualities (noun)

formidable

1. causing fear, dread, or apprehension <a formidable prospect> 2. having qualities that discourage approach or attack 3. tending to inspire awe or wonder (adj.) inspiring wonder, fear, dread

obliquely

1. not direct : not stated directly 2. of a line : having a slanting direction or position : neither perpendicular nor parallel (adj.) indirectly

frivolous

1. not important; not deserving serious attention 2. silly and not serious (adj.)

austere

1. simple or plain: not fancy 2. of a person: having serious and unfriendly quality 3. having few pleasures; simple and harsh; stern and severe (adj.)

thesis

a statement that someone wants to discuss or prove

propensities

a strong natural tendency to do something (noun)

denotation

the dictionary definition of a word

malaprophism

the misusing of a word

attributes

a usually good quality or feature someone or something has; principles, elements, subjects to be learned (noun)

diminutive

a word or suffix that indicates that something is small; an informal form of a name (noun)

articulate

able to express ideas clearly and effectively in speech or writing (adj.)

stereotype

a generalized picture of a person created without taking the whole person into account : to make such a generalization

predilection

a natural liking for something; a tendency to do or to be attracted to something; preference (noun)

sojourn

a period of time when you stay in a place as a traveler or guest (noun)

subclaim

a claim dependent on or arising out of another

simile

a comparison of two objects using like or as

metaphor

a comparison of two things without using like or as

veneer

a deceptively attractive external appearance (noun) dressing

aberrations

something such as a problem or type of behavior that is unusual or unexpected; a deviation, or a moving away from something that is normal (noun)

connotation

something suggested by a word or thing

entity

something that has a real existence; thing (noun)

euphemism

substituting a mild, indirect, or vague term for one considered harsh, blunt, or offensive

ominous

suggesting that something bad is going to happen in the future (adj.) inauspicious, doom, foreboding, threatening, sinister

inquisitive

tending to ask questions; having a desire to know or learn more (adj.)

taciturn

tending to be quiet; not speaking frequently (adj.)

guilelessness

the act of being very innocent; lack of craftiness and cunning in dealing with others (noun)

acquiescence

the act of tending to accept or allow what other people want or demand tolerance, unresistance, passiveness (noun) agreement without protest

disapprobation

the act or state of disapproving; the state of being disapproved (noun)

tone

the author's attitude toward the writing and the readers ex: serious, humorous

diction

the choice and use of words and phrases in speech or writing

symbolism

the use of symbols to represent ideas or qualities

elucidate

to clarify, clear up, get across, explain (verb)

ensuing

to come at a later time; to happen as a result (verb)

perpetrated

to do something that is illegal or wrong; carried out, committed (verb)

domiciled

to establish in a place of residence; abode; house or home (verb)

succinct

using few words to state or express an idea (adj.) brief, compact, crisp, curt, clear