AP Glossary Set One

Question 1

Active Voice

Answer 1

The subject of the sentence performs the action.

Question 2

Active Voice (Non-Example)

Answer 2

“A piano is being played by Julian.”

Question 3

Allusion

Answer 3

An indirect reference to something (usually a literary text, although it can be other things commonly known, such as plays, songs, historical events) with which the reader is supposed to be familiar.

Question 4

Anecdote

Answer 4

A brief recounting of a relevant episode. Anecdotes are often inserted into fictional or non fictional texts as a way of developing a point or injecting humor.

Question 5

Antecedent

Answer 5

The word, phrase, or clause referred to by a pronoun.

Question 6

Antecedent (Example)

Answer 6

David finished his homework assignment.

Question 7

Classicism

Answer 7

Art or literature characterized by a realistic view of people and the world; sticks to traditional themes and structures.

Question 8

Classicism (Example)

Answer 8

The Iliad and The Odyssey by Homer

Question 9

Comic relief

Answer 9

when a humorous scene is inserted into a serious story, in order to lighten the mood somewhat.

Question 10

Diction

Answer 10

Word choice, particularly as an element of style. Different types of words have significant effects on meaning.

Question 11

Colloquial

Answer 11

Ordinary or familiar type of conversation.

Question 12

Connotation

Answer 12

Rather than the dictionary definition (denotation), the associations suggested by a word. Implied meaning rather than literal meaning.

Question 13

Denotation

Answer 13

The literal, explicit meaning of a word, without its connotations.

Question 14

Jargon

Answer 14

The diction used by a group which practices a similar profession or activity.

Question 15

Vernacular

Answer 15

1. Language or dialect of a particular country.
2. Language or dialect of a regional clan or group.
3. Plain everyday speech

Question 16

Didactic

Answer 16

A term used to describe fiction, nonfiction or poetry that teaches a specific lesson or moral or provides a model of correct behavior or thinking.

Question 17

Didactic (Example)

Answer 17

How-To books, self help books, and philosophy books

Question 18

Adage

Answer 18

A folk saying with a lesson. “A rolling stone gathers no moss.”
(similar to Aphorism, and colloquialism)

Question 19

Allegory

Answer 19

A story, fictional or non fictional, in which characters, things, and events represent qualities or concepts.

Question 20

Aphorism

Answer 20

A abrupt statement which expresses a general truth or moral principle.

Question 21

Ellipsis

Answer 21

The deliberate omission of a word or phrase from prose done for effect by the author.

Question 22

Euphemism

Answer 22

A more agreeable or less offensive substitute for generally unpleasant words or concepts.

Question 23

Figurative Language

Answer 23

writing that is not meant to be taken literally.

Question 24

Analogy

Answer 24

An analogy is a comparison of one pair of variables to a parallel set of variables.

Question 25

Hyperbole

Answer 25

Exaggeration.

Question 26

Idiom

Answer 26

A common, often used expression that doesn’t make sense if you take it literally.

Question 27

Metaphor

Answer 27

Making an implied comparison, not using “like,” as,” or other such words.

Question 28

Metaphor (Non-example)

Answer 28

"Her mind in torment, wheeling like some lion at bay, dreading gangs of hunters closing their cunning ring around him for the finish." - The Odyssey, Book Four

Question 29

Metonymy

Answer 29

Replacing an actual word or idea, with a related word or concept.

Question 30

Synecdoche

Answer 30

A kind of metonymy when a whole is represented by naming one of its parts, or vice versa.

Question 31

Simile

Answer 31

Using words such as “like” or “as” to make a direct comparison between two very different things.

Question 32

Simile (Non-example)

Answer 32

"... with his virtuoso ease Odysseus strung his mighty bow. Quickly, his right hand plucked the string to test its pitch, and under his touch it sang out loud and clear and sharp..." - The Odyssey, Book Twenty-One

Question 33

Synesthesia

Answer 33

a description involving a “crossing of the senses.”

Question 34

Personification

Answer 34

Giving human-like qualities to something that is not human.