Key Language & Structure Techniques Flashcards

Question

Give examples and names for presnt tenses

Answer 1

Present Simple: She writes every day. (Used for habitual actions or general truths.) Present Continuous: She is writing a letter. (Used for actions happening right now or around the present time.) Present Perfect: She has written three letters today. (Used for actions that happened at an unspecified time before now or have relevance to the present.)

Answer 2

Past Simple: She wrote a letter yesterday. (Used for completed actions that happened at a specific time in the past Past Continuous: She was writing when I called her. (Describes an ongoing action in the past, often interrupted by another action.) Past Perfect: She had written the letter before I arrived. (Used for actions that were completed before another past action.) Past Perfect Continuous: She had been writing for an hour when I arrived. (Describes an action that was ongoing in the past before another action.)

Answer 3

Future Simple: She will write a letter tomorrow. (Used for actions that will happen in the future.) Future Continuous: She will be writing a letter at 10 AM tomorrow. (Describes an ongoing action that will be happening at a specific time in the future.) Future Perfect: She will have written the letter by the time I arrive. (Describes an action that will be completed before a specific point in the future.) Future Perfect Continuous: She will have been writing for an hour by the time I arrive. (Describes an ongoing action that will continue until a specific point in the future.)

Answer 4

Definition: Unrhymed iambic pentameter. Structure: Each line has 10 syllables, typically alternating unstressed and stressed syllables. Used in My Last Duchess – Robert Browning → Written in dramatic monologue style with unrhymed iambic pentameter (blank verse).

Answer 5

Definition: Poetry without a regular meter or rhyme scheme. Structure: Looser, more like natural speech; relies on line breaks, rhythm, and imagery. Uses Prayer Before Birth – Louis MacNeice Blessing – Imtiaz Dharker Search for My Tongue – Sujata Bhatt Poem at Thirty-Nine – Alice Walker War Photographer – Carol Ann Duffy Half-Caste – John Agard → All of these are contemporary poems that rely on imagery, enjambment, and natural rhythm rather than strict form or rhyme.

Answer 6

Definition: Poetry that uses a rhyme scheme. Structure: Can vary in meter, but rhyme is consistent (e.g., AABB, ABAB) Uses If – Rudyard Kipling → Regular rhyme scheme (ABAB) and rhythm; rhymed verse. The Tyger – William Blake → Rhymed quatrains (AABB), very regular and rhythmic. Piano – D.H. Lawrence → Regular rhyme (AA BB CC...), making it rhymed verse. Hide and Seek – Vernon Scannell → Loosely structured, but it has a narrative style with some rhyme; can be called rhymed/free verse hybrid. Remember – Christina Rossetti → A Petrarchan sonnet – 14 lines, ABBA ABBA CDD ECE; rhymed verse with iambic pentameter.

Answer 7

Definition: Rhymed pairs of lines in iambic pentameter. Structure: AA BB CC rhyme scheme, used in epic and narrative poetry.

Answer 8

Shakespearean (English): 14 lines, ABABCDCDEFEFGG rhyme, iambic pentameter. Petrarchan (Italian): 14 lines, octave (ABBAABBA) + sestet (varied). Uses Sonnet 116 – William Shakespeare → Classic Shakespearean sonnet (ABAB CDCD EFEF GG), iambic pentameter. Remember – Christina Rossetti → Petrarchan sonnet form, as mentioned above.

Answer 9

Definition: A traditional narrative poem that tells a story, often of love, death, betrayal, or supernatural events. Structure: Usually written in quatrains (four-line stanzas). Rhyme scheme: Commonly ABCB or ABAB. Meter: Alternating lines of iambic tetrameter (8 syllables) and iambic trimeter (6 syllables). Style: Often uses dialogue and repetition. Simple, direct language; originally meant to be sung. Uses La Belle Dame sans Merci – John Keats → Classic ballad form: ABCB rhyme scheme, narrative structure, archaic diction.

Answer 10

Definition: A highly structured 19-line poem known for repetition and a specific rhyme scheme. Structure: 19 lines total: 5 tercets (3-line stanzas) + 1 quatrain (4-line stanza). Refrains: The 1st and 3rd lines of the first stanza repeat alternately at the end of each following tercet and both appear in the final quatrain. Rhyme scheme: ABA ABA ABA ABA ABA ABAA. Style: Builds emotional intensity through repetition. Often deals with obsession, loss, resistance, or passion. uses Do Not Go Gentle into That Good Night – Dylan Thomas → A textbook villanelle: 19 lines, ABA ABA ABA ABA ABA ABAA, with repeated refrains.

Answer 11

Half-Past Two – U.A. Fanthorpe → Free verse with a childlike voice; irregular form, some rhyme appears occasionally but not consistent.

Answer 12

It is a figure of speech

Answer 13

Didactic (adjective) refers to something that is intended to teach, especially in having a moral, ethical, or instructional message.

Answer 14

Synecdoche is a figure of speech where you use: A part to represent the whole, OR A whole to represent a part. e.g England won the match.” "England" = The English team All hands on deck!” "Hands" = Sailors

Answer 15

Assonance is the repetition of vowel sounds in nearby words, especially in poetry or prose. It’s used to create rhythm, mood, or a musical quality. Unlike rhyme, the vowel sounds match, but the consonants can be different. | “The early bird catches the worm.” "ur" in bird, worm

Answer 16

Pathos is a rhetorical device or literary technique that appeals to the reader’s or audience’s emotions, especially pity, sadness, compassion, or sympathy. Make the audience feel something. Persuade or connect through emotional impact. Highlight suffering, loss, love, injustice, etc. | “A hundred agonies in black and white.”

Answer 17

Enjambment is when a sentence or phrase runs over from one line of a poem to the next, without a pause or punctuation at the end of the line. | “I think that I shall never see A poem lovely as a tree.”

Answer 18

The use of multiple conjunctions close together for emphasis or effect. | “I laughed and I ran and I cried and I kept going.”

Answer 19

Two consecutive lines of poetry that rhyme and usually have the same rhythm. | The sun is high, the sky is blue, The birds are singing just for you.

Answer 20

A pause in the middle of a line of poetry, often marked by punctuation (like a comma, dash, or full stop). Creates a dramatic pause | I’m tired — really tired.” (The dash is the caesura.)

Answer 21

A shift or turning point in a poem — in mood, tone, or argument. - Signals a change in perspective or emotion - Often adds contrast or surprise - Helps structure the poem’s message -

Answer 22

A contrast of ideas in a sentence or phrase, placed side by side for effect. Highlights conflict or opposing emotions Makes the message more dramatic or memorable Can show inner struggle, irony, or tension | “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times...” – Dickens