Alliteration
Alliteration is the repetition of identical beginning consonant sounds. You may have been introduced to alliteration with the tongue twister, "Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers." The repetition of the consonant p makes this line memorable.
Flashback
the author interrupts the scene of a narrative to tell about earlier events.
Foreshadowing
An author often gives hints or clues as to what will happen in a story.
Hyperbole
emphasis or humorous effect. The sentence "She tramped through the house like an elephant thundering through the jungle" is an example of
It creates a vivid but exaggerated picture of how a girl moves through a house.
Irony
When things happen that are in direct contrast to what we expect (or would like to happen), When people say
one thing but mean the opposite
when the reader knows something the character doesn't
Metaphor
compares two things directly
Extended metaphors
continue the comparison throughout the work.
Onomatopoeia
Splash, fizz, honk, whoosh, buzz�
Paradox
a statement that at first seems self-contradictory but that upon reflection makes sense
Personification
gives human characteristics to animals, objects, or ideas
Pun
plays on words that have similar meanings, as in the following example: "When you step on a scale and discover you have gained ten pounds, it's time to scale back your eating habits.
Refrain
a word, phrase, or series of lines that is repeated, adding rhythm and emphasis to a song
Repetition
the act of repeating words and phrases throughout a work
Simile
uses explicit words to make the comparison, such as like or as.
Symbol
a person, place, or object that has significance beyond its surface meaning
Tone
emotion created by the author's use of language or by a character's words and actions
Understatement
the opposite of hyperbole. It minimizes or lessens the importance of what is meant
Genres
fiction, nonfiction, poetry, plays, etc.
Rhyme
the repetition of sounds, most commonly heard at the ends of lines in poetry
Rhyme scheme
the pattern of rhymes in a poem
Allusion
implied or indirect reference to pop culture, a person, place, or thing that is fictitious, historical, or real
Conceit
An elaborate or extended simile or metaphor
Metonymy
figure of speech where the name of a thing is being substituted for another word or term closely associated with it
Synecdoche
figure of speech closely related to metonymy. A part is used to represent the whole or vice versa.
Drama
two most common types are tragedies and comedies.
Theme
central idea of a text
Denotation
the dictionary definition of a word
connotation
meaning or idea associated with the word
reference books
thesaurus, dictionary, encyclopedia
Narration
tells a story
Description
uses language to describe a person, place, or thing
allegory
A story in which each aspect of the story has a symbolic meaning outside the tale itself.