English Vocab Basic Flashcards
(121 cards)
1
Q
Aesthetics
A
the formal study of art and language, especially in relation to the idea of
be
2
Q
Allegory
A
a story or a narrative, often told at some length, which has a deeper meaning
below the surface (e.g. George Orwell`s Animal Farm)
3
Q
Allusion
A
a reference to another event, person, place, or work of literature. The allusion is usually implied rather than explicit, and often provides another layer of meaning to what is being said
4
Q
Ambiguity
A
Use of language where the meaning is unclear or has two or more possible
interpretations. It could be created through the weakness of the writer`s expression, but
often it is deliberately used by writers to create layers of meaning in the mind of the reader.
5
Q
Ambivalence
A
The situation where more than one possible attitude is being displayed by
the writer or poet towards a character, theme, idea, event, etc.
6
Q
Anachronism
A
As a noun: A thing belonging or appropriate to a period other than that in which it exists, especially a thing that is conspicuously old-fashioned.
As an action: attributing something to a period to which it does not belong
7
Q
Anaphoric reference
A
When a word or phrase refers to something mentioned earlier in the text
8
Q
Antithesis
A
Contrasting ideas or words that are balanced against each other (e.g. “To be, or not to be” - Shakespeare`s Hamlet”)
9
Q
Archaism
A
Use of language that is old-fashioned and no longer exist in common usage
10
Q
Ballad
A
A narrative poem that tells a story (traditional ballads were songs) usually in a
straightforward way. The theme is often tragic or contains a whimsical, supernatural, or fantastic element.
11
Q
Bias
A
Often supporting or opposing a particular person or thing in an unfair way by
allowing personal opinions to influence your judgment
12
Q
Caricature
A
A character described through the exaggeration of the features that he or she possesses
13
Q
Cataphoric reference
A
A type of referencing that points forward in the text (e.g.
Those were the days my friend.)
14
Q
Catharsis
A
A purging of emotions such as takes place at the end of a tragedy
15
Q
Censorship
A
The practice of officially examining books, movies, etc., and suppressing unacceptable parts.
16
Q
Cliche
A
A phrase, idea, or image that has been over-used so that it has lost so much of
its original meaning, impact, and freshness
17
Q
Cohesion
A
Links and connections that unite the elements of discourse or text
18
Q
Coinage
A
The creation and addition of new words to the existing word stock
19
Q
Collocation
A
two or more words that frequently appear together as part of a set
phrase . They are often well known and predictable, and many could be described as
idioms or cliches (e.g. safe and sound).
20
Q
Colloquial
A
an informal quality in speech or writing, often characterized by the use of
slang or non-standard features
21
Q
Command
A
the type of sentence in which someone is told to do something
22
Q
Communicative purpose
A
the reason why a piece of writing has been written or a speech made (e.g. to entertain, to explain, to persuade, to argue)
23
Q
Compound
A
a word made up of at least two free morphemes (e.g. babysitter)
24
Q
Conceit
A
an elaborate, extended, and sometimes surprising comparison between things
that, at first sight, do not have much in common
25
Connotation
the associations attached to a word in addition to its dictionary definition
26
Context
the social circumstances in which speech and writing takes place
27
Contraction
a shortened word (e.g. isn`t)
28
Contextual framework
the application of a particular socio/historical standpoint
used to analyze a text
29
Conversation analysis
a study of the key features in informal spoken interaction,
with a view to determining the following: (1) turn-taking; (2) constructing sequences of
utterances across turns; (3) identifying and repairing problems; (4) employing gaze and
movement
30
Critique
A detailed analysis and assessment of something, esp. a literary, philosophical, or political theory.
31
Critique
A detailed analysis and assessment of something, esp. a literary,
philosophical, or political theory
32
Culture
refers to the following ways of life, including but not limited to:
(1) Language :
the oldest human institution and the most sophisticated medium of expression.
(2) Arts & Sciences : the most advanced and refined forms of human expression.
(3) Thought : the ways in which people perceive, interpret, and understand the world around them.
(4)Spirituality : the value system transmitted through generations for the inner well-being of human beings, expressed through language and actions.
(5) Social activity : the shared pursuits within a cultural community, demonstrated in a variety of festivities and life- celebrating events.
(6) Interaction : the social aspects of human contact, including the give-and-take of socialization, negotiation, protocol, and conventions.
33
Declarative
A grammatical mood that expresses a statement (e.g. I am a hardworking
student.)
34
Deixis
words that can be interpreted only with reference to the speaker`s position in
space or time. These are known as deictic forms and fall into three main types:
(1) personal deixis, including the use of such pronouns as you or I that identify who is taking part in the discourse;
(2) spatial deixis, showing the speaker`s position in relation to other people or objects, e.g. this, that, here;
(3) temporal deixis, relating the speaker to time,using words such as tomorrow, now, yesterday.
35
Demonstrative
a term used to describe determiners or pronouns that distinguish one
item from other similar ones (e.g. this, that, these, those)
36
Dénotation
The literal or primary meaning of a word, in contrast to the feeling or ideas that the word suggests.
37
Dialect
A language variety marked by a distinctive grammar and vocabulary, used by
people with a common regional or social background
38
Dialogue
Language interaction between two or more people
39
Diction
The choice of words that a writer makes
40
Didactic
a term describing a work that is intended to preach or teach, often containing a
particular moral or political point
41
Direct speech
the actual words spoken by a person, recorded in written form using
speech marks or quotation marks
42
Discourse
Any spoken or written language that is longer than a sentence
43
Elegy
a meditative poem, usually sad and reflective in nature
44
Euphemism
a word or phrase used to avoid saying an unpleasant or offensive word
(e.g. to pass away replaces to die)
45
Elision
The omission of an unstressed syllable so that the line conforms to a particular
metrical pattern (e.g. o`er, e`en)
46
Ellipsis
The omission of a part of a sentence, which can be understood from the context
(e.g. I`d like to go to the concert but I cant (go to the concert). )
47
Etymology
The study of the history or origins of words
48
Exophoric reference
a type of referencing that points beyond the text, where the
reader or listener has to make a connection with something outside the text (e.g. The fish
was this big.)
49
Formulaic
a term to denote language that is patterned and always appears in the same form (eg. Yours faithfully)
50
Framework
A critical skeleton that could be applied to analyze texts in various ways to
suit the purpose of the analysis (e.g. literary framework, linguistic framework, contextual
framework, etc)
51
Gender roles
the general characteristics and behaviors between different sexes in a
society
52
Hyperbole
a deliberate and extravagant exaggeration
53
Ideology
a theory, or set of beliefs or principles, especially one on which a political
system, party or organization is based
54
Idiom
A sequence of words that is a unit of meaning (e.g. kick the bucket)
55
Imagery
The use of words to create a picture or image in the mind of the reader (e.g.
nature imagery, death imagery). Images can also relate to any of the senses: visual,
sound, tactile, gustatory, olfactory.
56
Imperative
a grammatical mood expressing a directive: command, warning, request,
etc.
57
Indirect speech
The words of a speaker that are reported rather than being quoted
directly (e.g. David said that he was going out.)
58
Insertion sequence
a feature occurring in spoken discourse where the original conversation is suspended because of an interruption caused by a speech sequence from another source. When the interruption has been dealt with, the original speech sequence resumes.
59
Intensifier
A word or phrase that adds emphasis (e.g. very, unbelievably)
60
Interrogative
a grammatical mood expressing a question
61
Inter-textual
having clear links with other texts through the themes, ideas, or issues
explored
62
Intonation
The tone of voice in speech
63
Inversion
reversing the order of clause elements, so that subject and verb appear in
the reverse of their normal order (e.g. Here is the milkman, instead of The milkman is
here.)
64
Irony
At its simplest level, irony means saying one thing while meaning another. It
occurs where a word or phrase has one surface meaning but another, contradictory and possibly other meaning is implied. Irony is often confused with sarcasm. Sarcasm is
spoken, often relying o tone of voice, and is much more blunt than irony.
65
Lament
A poem expressing intense grief
66
Language
a system of conventional spoken or written symbols by means of which human beings, as members of a social group and participants in its culture, express themselves. The functions of language include communication, the expression of identity, play, imaginative expression, and emotional release.
67
Language register, or style
the style of language, grammar and words used for
particular situations.There are five language registers or styles:
(1) static register, which rarely or never changes (e.g. the US Constitution, a bibliographic reference, laws, etc.);
(2) formal register, used in formal settings;
(3) consultative register used in a mutually
accepted structure of communications; it is professional discourse (e.g. communications
between a superior and a subordinate, doctor & patient, lawyer & client, teacher & student, etc);
(4) casual register, used in casual situations; (5)intimate register, used in private
communications with close family members or intimate people.
68
Lexicon
(a list of) all the words used in a particular language or subject, or a dictionary
69
Lexical/semantic field
a set of words grouped in a specific way for a specific communicative purpose (e.g. emotive language)
70
Loan word
word borrowed from another language
71
Malapropism
a mixing up of words that sound similar (e.g. She is as headstrong as an
allegory (for alligator) on the Nile.)
72
Media
Newspapers, magazines, radio and television considered as a group
73
Metalanguage
The language used to talk about language
74
Metonymy
a feature where an attribute of the thing being described stands for the
whole thing (e.g. crown can mean king or queen)
75
Modal
And auxiliary verb which cannot be used as a main verb (e.g. can, may, will,
shall, must, could, might, would, should)
76
Mode
a particular medium of communication (e.g. speech, writing, etc)
77
Modifier
a word that specifies the nature of another word or tells us more about it (e.g.
adjectives or adverbs)
78
Monologue
Speech or writing produced, and often performed, by one speaker
79
Monosyllabic
Having only one syllable
80
Narrative
A story or a description of a series of events
81
Neologism
A new or invented word or expression (e.g. shopaholic, computerate, etc)
82
Non-standard English
Any variety of language use that does not conform with the
standard, prestige form of English accepted as the norm by society
83
Ode
a verse form similar to a lyric but more lengthy and containing more serious and
elevated thoughts
84
Paradox
A statement that appears contradictory, but when considered more closely is
seen to contain a good deal of truth
85
Parody
A text that imitates the characteristic style of an author or a work for comic
effect
86
Pastoral
generally, literature concerning rural life with idealized settings and rustic
characters
87
Patterning
Language used in such a way as to create discernible patterns, perhaps
through imagery, a repeated symbol or motif, the use of parallelism, etc.
88
Periphasis
a round-about or long-winded way of saying something
89
Photic
a term describing language used to make social contact, which is intended more
to convey general sociability rather than to communicate meaning (e.g. Nice morning, isn`t it?)
90
Phonetics
The study of spoken sounds and the way in which they are produced
91
Pitch
The auditory level of sound
92
Pleonasm
The unnecessary use of words (e.g. here and now, this present day and age)
93
Polemic
a piece of writing or a speech in which a person strongly attacks or defends a
particular opinion, person, idea or set of beliefs
94
Polysyllabic
Having more than one syllable
95
Propaganda
Information, ideas, opinions or images, often only giving one part of an
argument, which are broadcast, published or in some other way spread with the intention
of influencing people's opinions.
96
Prose
Any kind of writing that is not verse - usually divided into fiction and non-fiction
97
Pun
a play on words that have similar sounds but quite different meanings
98
Representational features
Language use where one thing is used to represent another, as in symbolic language or imagery
99
Rhetoric
originally, speech or writing which is intended to be effective and influence
people; the art of persuasive discourse (see also rhetorical devices). Today the term is
often used to imply grand words that have no substance in them.
100
Rhetorical features
the purpose of a text and its author`s awareness of
composing for an audience: (1) persuasive intent; (2) informational value; (3)
entertainment value.
101
Satire
the highlighting or exposing of human failings or foolishness within a society, by
ridiculing them. Satire can range from gentle and light to extremely biting and bitter in tone
102
Semantics
The meaning of a word, phrase, sentence, or text
103
Sensationalism
when newspapers, television, etc. intentionally present information in
a way that is intended to be shocking or exciting
104
Sequencing
The rules governing the succession of utterances in discourse
105
Side-sequences
In spoken discourse, an explanation of something that has already
been uttered
106
Slang
Distinctive words and phrases associated with informal speech. Very often it is
used within certain social groups or age groups.
107
Stereotype
a fixed idea that people have about what someone or something is like,
especially an idea that is wrong
108
Stylist is
the study of lexical and structural variations in language according to use,
audience, and purpose
109
Sub-text
ideas, themes, or issues that are not dealt with overtly by a text but exist
below the surface meaning
110
Synecdoche
A device in which a part is used to represent a whole (e.g. There were
several new faces at the meeting.)
111
Syntax
The study of the structure of sentences
112
Tag question
an interrogative structure added to the end of a sentence which requires
a reply (e.g. Terrible weather, isn`t it?)
113
Tautology
saying the same thing twice over in different words (e.g. The visitors
arrived one after the other in succession.)
114
Text
a piece of spoken or written language with a definable communicative function
115
Textual features
The strategies or tactics the author uses to convey the message,
e.g. focus of the text, coherence, structural elements, transitions.
116
Theme
The central idea or ideas that a writer or speaker explores through his or her text
117
Topicality
The topic of a spoken encounter is directly related to its manner and its
participants . The topic can determine the level of formality, and topic shifts can occur
when speakers move from one topic to another. These mark key points in the discourse.
118
Turn-taking
organization of speakers` contributions in a conversation. Turns may be
fairly equal, or one of the participants may dominate.
119
Utterance
A piece of spoken language, also used to describe a spoken sentence
120
Vernacular
the native language a community uses for speech
121
Visual rhetoric
A form of communication that uses images to create meaning or construct an argument
