Techniques - Language

Question 1

alliteration

Answer 1

the repetition of the same sound or letter at the beginning of words in close succession

Question 2

allegory

Answer 2

a story, character, place, or event is used to convey a hidden meaning, typically moral or political, about real-world events or issues
e.g. his death is an allegory for the risk of killing kings

Question 3

allusion

Answer 3

an indirect reference to another event, person or work which the writer assumes the reader is familiar with

Question 4

antithesis

Answer 4

the direct opposite of a concept of person

Question 5

archetype

Answer 5

a person or thing who is a typical example of something, usually a personality type, with clear, recognisable characteristics

Question 6

bathos

Answer 6

an anti-climax which is abrupt; usually humour that comes from an odd and sudden change in tone

Question 7

biblical

Answer 7

language that relates to the bible and thus has religious connotations

Question 8

blazon

Answer 8

a poem in which the speaker describes a woman’s physique by focusing on and listing various individual parts of a woman’s body

Question 9

caricature

Answer 9

an imitation where particular notable characteristics are exaggerated to a comic or grotesque effect

Question 10

colloquialism

Answer 10

an informal word or phrase used in normal or familiar conversation

Question 11

comic relief

Answer 11

relief from tension caused by the introduction of a comedic element

Question 12

connotation

Answer 12

an impression, idea, or feeling associated with a word or phrase beyond its literal meaning

Question 13

dichotomy

Answer 13

a division or contrast between two opposed things

Question 14

dramatic irony

Answer 14

when the audience knows more about a situation than the characters discussing or experiencing it, meaning they know whether a character’s prediction or statement is correct

Question 15

double entendre

Answer 15

words or phrases that have a double meaning and is deliberately ambiguous, especially when one of the meanings is risqué
e.g. in Elizabethan England, “die” referred to both death and orgasm

Question 16

dysphemism

Answer 16

the substitution of a more offensive term for one considered less so

Question 17

epithet

Answer 17

a word or phrase applied to a person to describe an actual or credited quality
e.g. “star crossed lovers”

Question 18

epitome

Answer 18

a perfect example of a specific quality

Question 19

epizeuxis

Answer 19

the repetition of words in succession within the same sentence

Question 20

euphemsism

Answer 20

the substitution of a harmless term of one that is considered as offensively risqué or explicit

Question 21

extended metaphor

Answer 21

a metaphor that continues over many sentences and could even extend throughout the entire play

Question 22

foreshadowing

Answer 22

a device in which an author suggests certain plot developments that might come later in the play

Question 23

grotesque

Answer 23

ugly and distorted, physically or figuratively, in a way that is comic or repulsive

Question 24

hyperbole

Answer 24

an extravagant exaggeration of fact, used either for serious or comic effect

Question 25

ideology

Answer 25

a system of beliefs and ideals, typically forming a framework for a political policy or a religion

Question 26

imagery

Answer 26

use of language which is visually descriptive or symbolic

Question 27

innuendo

Answer 27

an implicit remark or hint, particularly one that is supposed to be suggestive or inappropriate

Question 28

interjection

Answer 28

a sudden remark, used often as an interruption or aside in a text

Question 29

irony

Answer 29

the use of words where the meaning is contrary to what is expected to actually occur

Question 30

juxtaposition

Answer 30

a literary technique that places two opposing words, phrases or events side by side, often for the main purpose of comparing or contrasting them
e.g. “here’s much to do with hate but more to do with love”

Question 31

metaphor

Answer 31

describing a person, object, or concept as something it cannot literally be, but that has recognisable and defining implications for it

Question 32

manifestation

Answer 32

a physical expression or realisation of an abstract idea through a character, object, place, or event

Question 33

motif

Answer 33

an element that reoccurs, such as a word, phrase, idea, image, action, character or symbol that appears throughout the play for emphasis

Question 34

oxymoron

Answer 34

a form of paradox that combines a pari of contrasting terms into a single sometimes unique expression
e.g. “o happy dagger”

Question 35

parable

Answer 35

a story used to teach a moral or spiritual lesson, typically told in the Bible by Jesus

Question 36

parody

Answer 36

imitating a particular style, genre or piece of work with deliberate exaggeration to create a comic effect

Question 37

pathetic fallacy

Answer 37

when human emotions or characteristics are given to objects, nature or the weather

Question 38

personification

Answer 38

giving something non-human a human trait, capability, or personality

Question 39

pun

Answer 39

a play on words which suggest multiple meanings

Question 40

sarcasm

Answer 40

saying the opposite of what one means or something that is obviously not true or reasonable, in order to mock or show contempt

Question 41

satire

Answer 41

using irony, exaggeration, humour, or ridicule to criticise someone’s stupidity or cruel behaviour, particularly in a political context

Question 42

semantic field

Answer 42

using words that are linked by a particular concept, context, or connotation throughout a text or section of a text

Question 43

sibilance

Answer 43

the repetition of an “s” sound in a word, sentence, or section of text

Question 44

simile

Answer 44

comparing something to something else in a nonliteral way, in order to convey a particular idea or quality about the original thing

Question 45

situational irony

Answer 45

when the outcome of an event is different than what was expected by the characters and the audience

Question 46

symbolism

Answer 46

using a character, object or event to represent something else, particularly an abstract idea

Question 47

trope

Answer 47

a particular type of character, event, or setting that is used frequently in stories
e.g. ‘damsel in distress’

Question 48

zoomorphism

Answer 48

imagery repressing animal forms