Vocabulary Words

Question 1

Allegory (def and pos)

Answer 1

noun
any piece of literature where characters, places, or things are all symbols that represent vices or virtues; used to teach a moral lesson

Question 2

Allegory (etymology)

Answer 2

late Middle English: from Old French allegorie, via Latin from Greek allēgoria, from allos ‘other’ + -agoria ‘speaking.

Question 3

Alliteration (def and pos)

Answer 3

noun

occurrence of closely connected words having the same first consonant sound

Question 4

Alliteration (etymology)

Answer 4

early 17th century: from medieval Latin alliteratio(n-), from Latin ad- (expressing addition) + littera ‘letter.’

Question 5

Allusion (def and pos)

Answer 5

noun
brief and indirect reference to a person, place, thing or idea of historical, cultural, literary or political significance; reader should possess enough knowledge to understand the allusion

Question 6

Allusion (etymology)

Answer 6

mid 16th century (denoting a pun, metaphor, or parable): from French, or from late Latin allusio(n-), from the verb alludere

Question 7

Ambiguity (def and pos)

Answer 7

noun

word, phrase, or statement which contains more than one meaning; may lead to confusion or unintended humor

Question 8

Ambiguity (etymology)

Answer 8

late Middle English: from Old French ambiguite or Latin ambiguitas, from ambiguus ‘doubtful’

Question 9

Analogy (def and pos)

Answer 9

noun

a comparison in which an idea or a thing is compared to another thing that is quite different from it; for explaining

Question 10

Analogy (etymology)

Answer 10

late Middle English (in the sense ‘appropriateness, correspondence’): from French analogie, Latin analogia ‘proportion,’ from Greek, from analogos ‘proportionate.’

Question 11

Antithesis (def and pos)

Answer 11

noun
use of contrasting concepts, words, or sentences within parallel grammatical structures; statement with contrasting ideas
Ex: One small step for man, one great leap for mankind.

Question 12

Antithesis (etymology)

Answer 12

late Middle English (originally denoting the substitution of one grammatical case for another): from late Latin, from Greek antitithenai ‘set against,’ from anti ‘against’ + tithenai ‘to place.’

Question 13

Colloquial (def and pos)

Answer 13

adjective

usage of informal or everyday language in literature; similar to slang; used mostly by native speakers

Question 14

Colloquial (etymology)

Answer 14

mid 18th century: from Latin colloquium ‘conversation’ + -al

Question 15

Connotation (def and pos)

Answer 15

noun

meaning implied by a word apart from the word’s actual definition

Question 16

Connotation (etymology)

Answer 16

mid 16th century: from medieval Latin connotatio(n-), from connotare ‘mark in addition’

Question 17

Denotation (def and pos)

Answer 17

noun

literal, or definition, meaning of a word

Question 18

Denotation (etymology)

Answer 18

“indication,” from Late Latin denotationem (nominative denotatio), noun of action from past participle stem of denotare

Question 19

Diction (def and pos)

Answer 19

noun

style of speaking; the words a writer chooses when writing a piece of literature

Question 20

Diction (etymology)

Answer 20

mid 16th century (denoting a word or phrase): from Latin dictio(n-), from dicere ‘to say.’

Question 21

Extended Metaphor (def and pos)

Answer 21

noun

a metaphor that is extended throughout the whole work of literature; can be a direct or implied metaphor

Question 22

Extended Metaphor (etymology)

Answer 22

late Middle English: from Latin extendere ‘stretch out,’ from ex- ‘out’ + tendere ‘stretch.’
late 15th century: from French métaphore, via Latin from Greek metaphora, from metapherein ‘to transfer.’

Question 23

Figurative Language (def and pos)

Answer 23

noun
language that uses figures of speech to be more effective or persuasive
Ex: simile, metaphor, personification

Question 24

Figurative Language (etymology)

Answer 24

Middle English: from late Latin figurativus, from figurare ‘to form or fashion,’ from figura
Middle English: from Old French langage, based on Latin lingua ‘tongue.

Question 25

Figure of Speech (def and pos)

Answer 25

noun | phrase or word having different meanings than its literal meanings; creates vivid rhetorical effects

Question 26

Figure of Speech (etymology)

Answer 26

Middle English (in the senses ‘distinctive shape of a person or thing,’ ‘representation of something material or immaterial,’ and ‘numerical symbol,’ among others): from Old French figure (noun), figurer (verb), from Latin figura ‘shape, figure, form’; related to fingere ‘form, contrive.’

Question 27

Genre (def and pos)

Answer 27

noun | form of literature characterized by similarities in form or style

Question 28

Genre (etymology)

Answer 28

early 19th century: French, literally ‘a kind’

Question 29

Imagery (def and pos)

Answer 29

noun | use figurative language to represent objects, actions, and ideas in such a way that it appeals to our physical senses

Question 30

Imagery (etymology)

Answer 30

Middle English (in the senses ‘statuary, carved images collectively’): from Old French imagerie, from imager ‘make an image,’ from image

Question 31

Inference/Infer (def and pos)

Answer 31

noun | logical deductions are made based on premises assumed to be true

Question 32

Inference/Infer (etymology)

Answer 32

late 16th century: from medieval Latin inferentia, from inferent- ‘bringing in,’ from the verb inferre

Question 33

Verbal Irony (def and pos)

Answer 33

noun | when someone says one thing but means the opposite ; sarcasm

Question 34

Verbal Irony (etymology)

Answer 34

late 15th century (describing a person who deals with words rather than things): from French, or from late Latin verbalis, from verbum ‘word early 16th century (also denoting Socratic irony): via Latin from Greek eirōneia ‘simulated ignorance,’ from eirōn ‘dissembler.’

Question 35

Situational Irony (def and pos)

Answer 35

noun | describes an occurrence that is the opposite of what is, or was, expected

Question 36

Situational Irony (etymology)

Answer 36

late Middle English (sense 2): from French, or from medieval Latin situatio(n-), from situare ‘to place

Question 37

Dramatic Irony (def and pos)

Answer 37

noun | the audience knows what is going to happen but a character in the literature work doesn't

Question 38

Dramatic Irony (etymology)

Answer 38

late 16th century: via late Latin from Greek dramatikos, from drama, dramat-

Question 39

Personification (def and pos)

Answer 39

noun | a figure of speech in which a thing – an idea or an animal – is given human attributes

Question 40

Personification (etymology)

Answer 40

early 18th century: from French personnifier, from personne ‘person.

Question 41

Point of View (def and pos)

Answer 41

noun | mode of narration that an author employs to let the readers “hear” and “see” what takes place in a story

Question 42

Point of View (etymology)

Answer 42

translating French point de vue, a loan-translation of Latin punctum visus. Figurative use is from 1760. The Latin phrase was translated into German as Gesichtspunkt.

Question 43

Prose (def and pos)

Answer 43

noun | a form of language that has no formal metrical structure natural flow of speech and simple grammatical structure

Question 44

Prose (etymology)

Answer 44

Middle English: via Old French from Latin prosa (oratio ) ‘straightforward (discourse),’ feminine of prosus, earlier prorsus ‘direct.’

Question 45

Repetition (def and pos)

Answer 45

noun | use of the same term several times to make something clearer

Question 46

Repetition (etymology)

Answer 46

late Middle English: from Old French repeticion or Latin repetitio(n-), from repetere

Question 47

Satire (def and pos)

Answer 47

noun a technique employed by writers to expose and criticize foolishness and corruption of an individual or a society, by using humor, irony, exaggeration, or ridicule

Question 48

Satire (etymology)

Answer 48

early 16th century: from French, or from Latin satira, later form of satura ‘poetic medley.

Question 49

Semantics (def and pos)

Answer 49

noun | important branch of linguistics that deals with interpretation and meaning of the words, sentence structure, and symbols

Question 50

Semantics (etymology)

Answer 50

mid 17th century: from French sémantique, from Greek sēmantikos ‘significant,’ from sēmainein ‘signify,’ from sēma ‘sign.’

Question 51

Symbolism (def and pos)

Answer 51

noun use of symbols to signify ideas and qualities, by giving them symbolic meanings that are different from their literal sense

Question 52

Symbolism (etymology)

Answer 52

mid 17th century: from French symbolique or late Latin symbolicus, from Greek sumbolikos

Question 53

Theme (def and pos)

Answer 53

noun | the main idea or underlying meaning of a story; stated directly or indirectly

Question 54

Theme (etymology)

Answer 54

Middle English: via Old French from Latin thema, from Greek, literally ‘proposition’; related to tithenai ‘to set or place

Question 55

Thesis (def and pos)

Answer 55

noun | a statement in a non-fiction or a fiction work that a writer intends to support and prove; found at beginning

Question 56

Thesis (etymology)

Answer 56

late Middle English (sense 3): via late Latin from Greek, literally ‘placing, a proposition,’ from the root of tithenai ‘to place.’

Question 57

Tone (def and pos)

Answer 57

noun | attitude or opinion of the author towards their audience: conveyed through choice of words

Question 58

Tone (etymology)

Answer 58

Middle English: from Old French ton, from Latin tonus, from Greek tonos ‘tension, tone,’ from teinein ‘to stretch.’

Question 59

Transition (def and pos)

Answer 59

noun | words and phrases that provide a connection between ideas, sentences, and paragraphs; helps writing flow better

Question 60

Transition (etymology)

Answer 60

mid 16th century: from French, or from Latin transitio(n-), from transire ‘go across.’

Question 61

Voice (def and pos)

Answer 61

noun | form or a format through which narrators tell their stories; author's writing style or point of view

Question 62

Voice (etymology)

Answer 62

Middle English: from Old French vois, from Latin vox, voc-