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AP English Literature Rhetorical Devices 3
Rhetorical Devices Vocabulary Exam 3
30
English
12th Grade
08/30/2009

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Term
Ad Hominem
Definition
a logical fallacy, in which the speaker/writer attacks his opponent rather than his opponent's idea or argument
Term
allusion
Definition
a reference to any idea known within the audience's culture
Term
analogy
Definition
the comparison of two ideas, especially when the more familiar idea is used to explain something about the less familiar
Term
apostrophe (something you do to technology when it doesn't work)
Definition
direct address to an inanimate object, abstract quality, absent, and/or nonexistent personage
Term
circumlocution
Definition
a roundabout use of many words to describe something simple
Term
description
Definition
Usage Definition: specific details used to make the abstract seem concrete
Term
epithet
Definition
a descriptive phrase, identifying an its subject by a featured characteristic
Term
euphemism
Definition
the "polite" reconstruction of an unpleasant or offensive expression
Term
hyperbole
Definition
exaggeration for effect
Term
imagery
Definition
descriptive language that taps into any of the 5 senses
Term
innuendo
Definition
an indirect, usually disapproving remark, usualy suggesting something "bad" or "rude" about the object of discussion
Term
irony
Definition
a "gap" between what
(a) Verbal - is said/meant
(b)Situational - is expected/happens or (c)Dramatic - audience/characters know
Term
kenning
Definition
the compounding of two words to create a metaphoric circumlocution
Term
litotes
Definition
negative understatement for effect
Term
metaphor
Definition
the portrayal of one word/idea as being or being equal to another in some significant way
Term
metonymy
Definition
the substitution of a metaphorical "stand-in" for the actual idea of reference
Term
oxymoron
Definition
the combination, fore effect, of two usually contradictory terms
Term
paradox
Definition
the combination of two ideas that seem contradictory but in fact are not
Term
paralipsis
Definition
the introduction of a topic by denying its introduction
Term
persona
Definition
the "mask" or "role" taken up by a character, narrator, or real-life person
Term
personification
Definition
the endowment of animals, ideas, abstractions, and inanimate objects with human form, character, or sensibilities
Term
pun
Definition
a play on two words using the similarity of their sounds, the differences in their meanings
Term
rhetorical question
Definition
a question put forth for argumentative effect, not to provoke a reply
Term
sarcasm
Definition
a form of verbal irony in which "praise" is used to deliver bitter disapproval
Term
simile
Definition
a figure spotlighting the similarity of two unlike things using "like" or "as"
Term
syllepsis
Definition
one word used the same grammatically but with different meanings (holding door vs holding breath)
Term
symbol
Definition
an idea with concrete "value" but stands for something else
Term
synecdoche
Definition
the substitution of a "part" for the "whole"
Term
tone
Definition
the attitude demonstrated or fostered by an author toward his/her subject
Term
understatement
Definition
when the literal sense means "less than" what is intended
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