Rhetoric Terms

Question 1

Ethos

Answer 1

an appeal to ethics to convince someone of the credibility of the persuader. its pretty rad

Question 2

Logos

Answer 2

the principle of reason and judgement, used to persuade by using logic.

Question 3

Pathos

Answer 3

Appeal to emotions

Question 4

Parallelism

Answer 4

two or more parts of a sentence a similar form or pattern

Question 5

Juxtaposition

Answer 5

strategic placement of contrasting concepts.

Question 6

Irony

Answer 6

to convey a meaning opposite of it’s literal meaning.

Question 7

Tone

Answer 7

general change in voice or attitude to express certain emotions or mood about the subject

Question 8

Rhetorical Questions

Answer 8

a question intended to make a point rather than elicit an answer

Question 9

Periodic Sentence

Answer 9

a sentence where the main point is found at the end of the sentence

Question 10

Syllogism

Answer 10

Step by step formula for deductive logic; two connecting statements that make an obvious logical leap to the conclusion.

Question 11

Alliteration

Answer 11

Occurrence of the same letter or sound at the beginning of closely connected words

Question 12

Understatement

Answer 12

the presentation of something to be smaller, worse, or less important than it truly is.

Question 13

Allusion

Answer 13

an expression designed to call something to mind without mentioning it explicitly; an indirect or passive reference

Question 14

Apostrophe

Answer 14

a digression to address a usually absent person, personified thing, or imaginary character.

Question 15

Antithesis

Answer 15

a person or a thing that is the direct opposite of someone or something else; a contrast or opposition between two things.

Question 16

Metonymy

Answer 16

a figure of speech in which a thing or a concept is not addressed by it’s own name but by the name of something it is associated with

Question 17

Synecdoche

Answer 17

a figure of speech in which the term of a part of something refers to the whole of something, or vice versa.

Question 18

Satire

Answer 18

a form of literature in which sarcasm and irony are heavily used in order to mock or parody someone or something.

Question 19

Hyperbole

Answer 19

an exaggerated statement that is not mean to be taken literally, and is used for emphasis.

Question 20

Colloquialism

Answer 20

a word or phrase that is not formal or literary, typically one used in ordinary or familiar conversation

Question 21

Diatribe

Answer 21

an angry and usually long speech or piece of writing that strongly criticizes someone or something

Question 22

Double entendre

Answer 22

a phrase that can be interpreted to have two different meanings, one of which is usually indecent.

Question 23

Diction

Answer 23

the choice and use of words and phrases in speech or writing; style of speaking

Question 24

Syntax

Answer 24

the arrangement of words and phrases to create a well-formed sentence

Question 25

Allegory

Answer 25

a story, poem or picture that can be interpreted to reveal a hidden meaning, typically a moral or political one.

Question 26

Anecdote

Answer 26

A brief and entertaining story about a real person or event, often used for persuasion.

Question 27

Antecedent

Answer 27

literary device in which a word or pronoun in a sentence refers to an earlier word.

Question 28

Circumlocution

Answer 28

being vague and evasive by using many words to say something that could be said more directly with fewer words.

Question 29

Epithet

Answer 29

characterizing word or phrase accompanying or occurring in place of the name or person. sometimes abusive word or phrase.

Question 30

Logical fallacy

Answer 30

the faulty reasoning or breakdown of logic

Question 31

Motif

Answer 31

a distinctive feature or dominant idea in an artistic or literary composition

Question 32

Paradox

Answer 32

a statement with valid reasoning that seems senseless, logically unacceptable, or self contradictory.

Question 33

Pun

Answer 33

a form of wordplay that suggests two or more meanings

Question 34

Qualifying statement

Answer 34

a statement used to qualify another statement so the reader believes what is said

Question 35

Repudiation

Answer 35

the rejection of a proposal or an idea; the denial of the truth

Question 36

Self-deprecating humor

Answer 36

humor that belittles or undervalues oneself

Question 37

Pastiche

Answer 37

a literary, musical or artistic piece consisting predominantly of motifs or techniques borrowed from other sources

Question 38

invective

Answer 38

an abusive or insulting word of phrase

Question 39

Anticlimax

Answer 39

a disappointing end to an exciting or impressive series of events.

Question 40

Digression

Answer 40

changing the topic

Question 41

Subordinate clause

Answer 41

a clause that can not stand alone as a complete sentence

Question 42

Hypothetical example

Answer 42

a fictional situation or proposition used to explain a complicated subject

Question 43

Isocolon

Answer 43

a succession of sentences, phrases or clauses of grammatically equal length

Question 44

Sardonic

Answer 44

characterized by bitter or scornful derision; mocking, cynical or sneering. (tone word)

Question 45

Didactic

Answer 45

intended to teach people something often in an annoying way; patronizing.

Question 46

Asyndeton

Answer 46

the omission or absence of a conjunction between parts of sentences.

Question 47

Conceit

Answer 47

a figure of speech in which two vastly different objects are linked together with the use of metaphors or similes. or excessive pride

Question 48

Litotes

Answer 48

ironical understatements in which an affirmative is expressed by the negative of its contrary: "not too shabby"

Question 49

Ad hominem

Answer 49

an argument directed at a person or opponent instead of the position they defend

Question 50

Ad populum (bandwagon)

Answer 50

an argument that says something is true because most people believe it to be.

Question 51

Begging the question (circular reasoning )

Answer 51

the wanted conclusion is assumed to be true (directly or indirectly)

Question 52

Equivocation

Answer 52

confusing an argument by using a single word or phrase in more than one sense

Question 53

Post hoc, ergo propter hoc

Answer 53

since event y followed event x, event y must have been caused by event x

Question 54

Non sequitur

Answer 54

a conclusion or statement that does not logically follow the previous argument or statement

Question 55

Red herring

Answer 55

something that is intended to be a distraction from the main issue of an argument

Question 56

Straw man

Answer 56

a strategy of exaggerating a false argument to strengthen ones real argument

Question 57

Slippery slope

Answer 57

a fallacy where a person asserts that an event must inevitably follow without any argument for the inevitability of the event in question

Question 58

Poisoning the well

Answer 58

a type of reasoning that attempts to discredit something that someone is about to say by providing unfavorable information about the specific person, whether it be true or false

Question 59

Hasty generalization

Answer 59

to make a hasty/ fast generalization about something without considering all of the variables

Question 60

False analogy

Answer 60

an analogy where two objects or events are argued to be similar or the same based on properties they share