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English > Metalanguage > Flashcards

Metalanguage Flashcards

1
Q

Acronym

A

A word formed from the first letter or letters of several words, for example SCUBA- self contained underwater breathing apparatus.

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2
Q

Active Voice.

A

When a sentence has the subject before the verb. The subject directly does the verb.

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3
Q

Adjective

A

A word that describes a noun.

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4
Q

Adverb

A

A word that describes a verb, adjective or another adverb.

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5
Q

Allegory

A

A story in which there are two meanings, there is the literal meaning and the symbolic representation of the story. Example Animal Farm is a story that represents Communism.

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6
Q

Alliteration

A

A literary device in which the writer repeats the initial consonant sounds of words close together to achieve an effect.

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7
Q

Allusion

A

A reference to a famous figure or event from literature, history, mythology or the Bible. For instance referring someone to a ‘Cassandra’ means that the person bears bad news.

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8
Q

Analogy

A

A comparison to things that are very alike, like the eye and the lens of a camera.

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9
Q

Antagonist.

A

The character opposing the protagonist(main character).

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10
Q

Antonyms

A

Words with the opposite meanings, eg. slow fast.

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11
Q

Aside

A

Words that are directed to the audience by an actor that are not supposed to be heard by other characters.

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12
Q

Audience

A

The readers/viewers of a text.

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13
Q

Ballad

A

A narrative poem that has a strong rhyming scheme, repetitive rhythm and is meant to be sung.

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14
Q

Blank Verse

A

Poetry that has no rhyming, but rhythm to indicate that it is a poem.

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15
Q

Caricature

A

Exaggerated description of a person.

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16
Q

Characterization

A

Techniques used by writers to create characters, eg. describing appearance, getting the character to talk or act etc.

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17
Q

Cinematography

A

Techniques in a film that a director uses to create a particular effect.

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18
Q

Cliche’

A

An expression so overused it has lost its effectiveness - ‘Its raining cats and dogs’.

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19
Q

Conjunction

A

A word that joins two words, phrases, clauses or sentences. eg. although, and, but, when etc.

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20
Q

Context

A

Environment and situations surrounding part or all of a text.

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21
Q

Denouement

A

The unraveling of a plot.

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22
Q

Dialogue

A

Actual words spoken by characters in a text.

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23
Q

Diegetic Sound

A

Sound that has a source visible onscreen, for example the voices of characters talking.

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24
Q

Epigram

A

A concise, witty statement that says something memorable, eg. ‘But in this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes; -Benjamin Franklin

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25
Q

Epilogue

A

The closing part of a speech/play.

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26
Q

Epitaph

A

A statement carved into someone’s tombstone that sums up their life/personality.

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27
Q

Essay

A

A structured piece of writing on a particular topic.

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28
Q

Eulogy

A

A speech at a funeral honouring the dead.

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29
Q

Euphemism

A

A mild/indirect way of saying something that is unpleasant. eg. ‘he passed away’ instead of ‘he died’.

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30
Q

Fable

A

A short story that has a lesson in life. eg. .The tortoise and the Hare’.

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31
Q

Farce

A

A type of comedy that contains an improbable plot and slapstick humour, for example, films such as Happy Gilmore and Dumb and Dumber.

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32
Q

Flashback

A

A device used by writers (and film-makers) in which there is a return to events that occurred in the past.

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33
Q

Free Verse

A

Poetry that does not have a regular rhythm and pattern and that is very similar to prose, except that it is divided into lines that give it poetic qualities. (See also blank verse.)

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34
Q

Genre

A

A category of text that shares similar conventions (such as plot, style, characterisation), for example, detective fiction, science fiction and coming-of-age narratives.

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35
Q

Hyperbole

A

A deliberate and obvious exaggeration used for effect: for example, I’ve told you a million times.’

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36
Q

Idiom

A

A type of figurative language that does not literally mean what it says, for example, to have a chip on your shoulder or to get cold feet.

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37
Q

Imagery

A

Pictures created with words, often by appealing to a range of senses, that writers use to make their descriptions more vivid.

38
Q

Irony

A

A figure of speech where the literal meaning is different from the intended meaning; a discrepancy between what is said and what is meant, between appearances and reality, or

39
Q

Jargon

A

Specialist language that is particular to a trade, profession or other group, such as cricketers (golden duck, yorker)

40
Q

Malapropism

A

An incorrect/inappropriate use of a word because of its similarity to the correct word. eg. ‘calling that man a monkey is rapist’ instead of ‘calling that man a monkey is racist’.

41
Q

Melodrama

A

A play based on an exaggerated or sensational pot of story. Like Soap operas on TV.

42
Q

Memoir

A

A record of the narrator’s own life and experiences.

43
Q

Metaphor

A

A figure of speech that compares one object with another and speaks of it as if it actually were the other: for example, ‘The road was a ribbon of moonlight’ (Alfred Noyes, ‘The Highwayman’).

44
Q

Mise en scene

A

The stage or film setting, or surroundings?all the elements that form a particular scene.

45
Q

Montage

A

An image formed from the juxtaposition or superimposition of a variety of shots in a film or photo.

46
Q

Myth

A

A traditional tale, usually about supernatural beings or events, which is sometimes used as

47
Q

Noun

A

Words that name people and things. Common nouns are the common or everyday names. Concrete nouns are something you can touch. Abstract nouns are things you cannot touch.

48
Q

Novel

A

A long prose narrative of imaginary people and events.

49
Q

Novella

A

A short novel.

50
Q

Obituary

A

A written tribute to someone who has died.

51
Q

Onomatopoeia

A

The formation of words that echo the sounds they describe, for example, splash, quack etc.

52
Q

Oxymoron

A

A figure of speech that brings together two seemingly contradictory things, for example,

53
Q

Parable

A

A short story that illustrates a moral or lesson. The Bible contains many parables.

54
Q

Paradox

A

A statement that appears to contradict itself but that does, however have some element of truth to it.

55
Q

Parody

A

A humorous imitation of a work. eg. ‘You’re a wizard Harry!’ - look up on you tube if unfamiliar

56
Q

Passive Voice

A

The verb in a sentence is before the subject.

57
Q

Persona

A

A character in a text.

58
Q

Personification

A

A type of metaphor in which objects are given human characteristics.

59
Q

Plagiarism

A

Copying the writing or work of another person and passing it off as your own.

60
Q

Plot

A

The sequence of events in a text that tell the story.

61
Q

Point of View

A

A contention, opinion, belief or conviction.

62
Q

Point of view in a narrative

A

The perspective from which a story is told, which helps the reader to understand who the characters are, what they are feeling, what is being said and who is saying it.

63
Q

Prologue

A

Traditionally, the introduction to a play; now used to refer to the introduction to any literary work.

64
Q

Pronoun

A

A word that takes the place of a noun?personal pronouns take the place of nouns that name people, animals or things (me, she, he, it, they); possessive pronouns indicate possessions (yours, mine, his, her, theirs).

65
Q

Prose

A

Writing that does not have a rhythmic pattern and is written in sentences (unlike poetry).

66
Q

Protagonist

A

The main character in a text.

67
Q

Pun

A

An amusing play on words that sound or look similar and have different meanings. Eg. many many newspaper articles have these - ‘Taco Bell, need a job, just taco us about it’. - Sanchez

68
Q

Reading

A

A particular interpretation of a text. Note that a text will often have more than one such possible interpretation.

69
Q

Register

A

The type of language, such as formal or informal, that s appropriate to a particular setting such as vocational, educational or social.

70
Q

Rhyme

A

The repetition of similar or identical sounds.

71
Q

Rhythm

A

The beat or pattern of stresses that occur in a poem.

72
Q

Satire

A

The use of mocking exaggerated humour to ridicule: for example, Gulliver’s Travels by Jonathan Swift made fun of the government and politics of the day.

73
Q

Semantics

A

The study of the meanings of words.

74
Q

Semiotics

A

The study of the system of socially understood signs and symbols: for example, most viewers would understand the ‘hidden’ meaning of a scene in a horror film where the lights suddenly go out in the house and a scream is heard.

75
Q

Setting

A

The time and place in which the action occurs.

76
Q

Short Story

A

A story that is, as its name suggests, shorter than a novel; it will generally concentrate on either the presentation of a character, a cleverly devised plot or the development of an interesting idea or theme.

77
Q

Simile

A

A figure of speech that asks us to compare one thing to another, generally using the words

78
Q

Soliloquy

A

A speech where a character expresses his or her inner thoughts aloud to himself or herself, thereby allowing the audience to see what is going on in the character’s mind.

79
Q

Sonnet

A

A type of poem originally developed by the Italian poet Petrarch and later used extensively by Shakespeare. A sonnet has fourteen iambic pentameter lines. An English sonnet is made

80
Q

Stage Directions

A

Instructions, given by a playwright, about the movement and behaviour of characters, and the organisation of the set.

81
Q

Stanza

A

A grouping of lines of verse in a poem.

82
Q

Stereotype

A

A person or thing that is considered to be representative of a group. eg. Alex is a typical Asian.

83
Q

Symbol

A

Something that is used to Suggest or represent something else: for example, a red cross represents a medical facility. Be aware that there can be more than one reading for any symbol.

84
Q

Tense

A

When you can see Anthony Tran’s muscles…The form of verbs that indicates the time (and, to a degree, the duration) of an action: for example, I wrote (past tense), I write (present tense), I will write (future tense).

85
Q

Text response

A

A structured piece of writing that answers a questions about a text.

86
Q

Theme

A

The central idea or issue that is behind the events in a written text and is the motivation for a writer: for example, the theme of Erich Maria Remarque’s All Quiet on the Weslem Front is usually interpreted as the futility of war.

87
Q

Tone

A

The attitude of the writer towards his or her subject matter and reader.

88
Q

Tragedy

A

A drama (usually a play) that tells of serious events that end with disastrous consequences for the main character.

89
Q

Tragic Hero

A

The main character in a tragedy who suffers a downfall due to a defect or weakness in his or her character. In Shakespeare’s play Macbeth, the hero’s downfall was traditionally thought to have been caused by his vanity and ambition.

90
Q

Unreliable Narrator

A

A first-person narrator of a text whose subjective (arid perhaps flawed) interpretation of narrator events does not match the interpretation that the author expects other characters or readers to share.

91
Q

Verb

A

An Action Word.

92
Q

Voice

A

The overall characteristics of a piece of writing that are unique to and recognizable as belonging to a particular author. eg. Shakespeare’s voice is known to be incredibly hard to read…

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