AP Language and Composition Glossary of Literary and Rhetorical Terms
Compound-complex sentence
contains two or more independent clauses and at least one dependent clause.
Parenthetical idea
An idea that is set off from the rest of the sentence.
Denotation
the literal, explicit meaning of a word, without its connotations.
Allusion
An indirect reference to something with which the reader is supposed to be familiar.
Anecdote
A brief recounting of a relevant episode.
Idiom
A common, often used expression that doesn't make sense if you take it literally.
Analogy
A comparison to a directly parallel case.
Loose sentence
A complex sentence in which the main clause comes first and the subordinate clause follows.
Apostrophe
A figure of speech that directly addresses an absent or imaginary person or personified abstraction, such as liberty or love. The effect may add familiarity or emotional intensity.
Adage
A folk saying with a lesson
Sarcasm
A generally bitter comment that is ironically worded.
Clause
A grammatical unit that contains both a subject and a verb.
Sentence
A group of words (including subject and verb) that expresses a complete thought.
Euphemism
A more agreeable or less offensive substitute for generally unpleasant words or concepts.
Litotes
A particular form of understatement, generated by denying the opposite of the statement which otherwise would be used.
Rhetorical question
A question not asked for information but for effect.
Epigraph
A quotation or aphorism at the beginnning of a literary work suggestive of theme.
Paradox
A seemingly contradictory statement which is actually true.
Epigram
A short poem with a clever twist at the end, or a concise and witty statement.
Allegory
A story, fictional or non fictional, in which characters, things, and events represent qualities or concepts.
Didactic
A term used to describe fiction, nonfiction or poety that teaches a specific lesson or moral or provides a model of correct behavior or thinking.
Aphorism
A terse statement which expresses a general truth or moral principle.
Appositive
A word or group or words placed beside a noun or noun substitute to supplement its meaning.
Satire
A work that reveals a critical attitude toward some element of life to a humorous effect.
Attitude of the author/tone
A writer's attitude toward his subject matter revealed through diction, figurative language, and organization.
Objectivity
An author's stance that distances himself from personal involvement.
Invective
An emotionall violent, verbal denunciation or attack using strong, abusive language.
Ambiguity
An event or situation that may be interpreted in more than one way.
Parody
An exaggerated imitation of a serious work for humorous purposes.
Symbol
Anything that represents or stands for somthing else.
Classicism
Art or literature characterized by a realistic view of people and the world; sticks to traditional themes and structures.
Romanticism
Art or literature characterized by an idealistic, perhaps unrealistic view of people and the world, and an emphasis on nature.
Compound sentence
Contains at least two independent clauses but no dependent clauses.
Simple sentence
Contains one independent clause.
Complex sentence
Contains only one independent clause and at least one dependent clause.
Hyperbole
Exaggeration
Annotation
Explanatory notes added to a text to explain, clarify, or prompt futher thought.
Situational irony
Found in the plot of a book, story, or movie.
Syntax/sentence variety
Grammatical arrangement of words.
Connotation
Implied meaning rather than literal meaning.
Imperative sentence
Issues a command.
Vernacular
Language or dialect of a particular country, language or dialect of a regional clan or group, plain everyday speech.
Concrete Language
Language that describes specific, observable things, peoples or places, rather than ideas or qualities.
Abstract Language
Lauguage descirbing ideas and qualities rather than observable or specific things, people or places.
Metaphor
Making an implied comparsion, not using "like," "as," or other such words.
Pedantic
Observing strict adherence to formal rules or literal meaning at the expense of a wider view.
Balanced sentence
One in which two parallel elements are set off against each other like equal weights on a scale.
Colloquial
Ordinary or familiar type of conversation.
Juxtaposition
Placing things side by side for the purposes of comparison.
Anaphora
Repetition or a word, phrase, or clause at the beginning of two or more sentences in a row.
Parallelism/parallel structure
Sentence construction which places equal grammatical construction near each other, or repeats identical grammatical patterns.
Interrogative sentence
Sentences incorporating interrogative pronouns.
Transition
Smooth movement from one paragraph (or idea) to another.
Declarative sentence
States an idea
Explication
The act of interpreting or discovering the meaning of a text.
Rhetoric
The art of effective communication.
Mood
The atmosphere created by the literature and accomplished through word choice.
Theme
The central idea or message of a work.
Style
The choices in diction, tone, and syntax that a writer makes.
Ellipsis
The deliberate omission of a word or phrase from prose done for effect by the author.
Jargon
The diction used by a group which practices a similar profession or activity.
Persona
The fictional mask or narrator that tells a story.
Genre
The major category into which a literary work fits.
Figurative Language
The opposite of "literal language"; writing that is not meant to be taken literally
Thesis
The sentence or groups of sentences that directly expresses the author's opinion, purpose, meaning, or proposition.
Active voice
The subject of the sentence performs the action.
Passive voice
The subject of the sentence receives the action.
Antecedent
The word, phrase, or clause referred to by a pronoun.
Homily
This term literally means "sermon," but more informally, it can include any serious talk, speech, or lecture involving moral or spiritual advice.
Antithesis
Two opposite or contrasting words, phrases, or clauses, or even ideas, with parallel structure.
Simile
Using words such as "like" or "as" to make a direct comparison between two very different things.
Oxymoron
When apparently contradictory terms are grouped together and suggest a paradox.
Dramatic irony
When the audience of a drama, play, movie, etc. knows something that the character doesn't and would be surprised to find out.
Periodic sentence
When the main idea is not completed until the end of the sentence.
Irony
When the opposite of what you expect to happen does.
Verbal irony
When you say something and mean the opposite/something different.
Diction
Word choice, particularly as an element of style.
Imagery
Word or words that create a picture in the reader's mind.
Gothic
Writing characterized by gloom, mystery, fear and/or death.
Understatement
the ironice minimizing of fact, presents something as less significant than it is.