Alliteration
The repetition of sounds, initial consonant sounds in two or more neighboring words.
Connotation
The non-literal, associative meaning of a word; implied or suggested meaning.
Denotation
The strict, literal, dictionary definition of a word.
Diction
Related to style, the writer's word choices, with regard to correctness, clearness and effectiveness.
Exposition
Writing or speech intended to convey information in order to explain.
Extended Metaphor
A metaphor developed at great length, occurring frequently throughout a work.
Figurative Language
Writing or speech that is not intended to carry literal meaning; usually meant to be imaginative and vivid.
Figure of Speech
A device used to produce figurative language. Many compare dissimilar things.
Genre
The major category into which a literary work fits; the basic
division of literature
Homily
Meaning "sermon"; can include any serious talk, speech or
lecture involving a moral or spiritual voice.
Hyperbole
A figure of speech using deliberate exaggeration or
overstatement.
Imagery
The sensory details or figurative language used to describe,
arouse emotion or represent abstractions.
Inference
To draw a reasonable conclusion from the information
presented.
Irony
The contrast between what is stated explicitly and what is
really meant.
Metaphor
A figure of speech using implied comparison of unlike
things or the substitute of one for the other suggesting some
similarity.
Mood
The prevailing atmosphere or emotional aura of a work.
Narrative
The telling of a story or an account of an event or series of
events.
Onomatopoeia
A figure of speech in which natural sounds are imitated in
the sounds of words.
Personification
A figure of speech in which the author presents or describes
concepts, animals, or inanimate objects by endowing them
with human attributes or emotions.
Prose
One of the major divisions of genre and refers to fiction and
nonfiction, including all its forms.
Repetition
The duplication of any element of language, such as sound,
word, phrase etc.
Rhetorical Situation
Made up of the context of the rhetorical act, the rhetor, the
issue, and the audience.
Sarcasm
Bitter, caustic language that is meant to hurt or ridicule
someone or something.
Symbol
An object representing another, to give an entirely different
meaning that is much deeper and more significant.
Thesis
The sentence or group of sentences that expresses the
author's purpose, meaning or position.
Transition
A word or phrase that links different ideas.
Understatement
The ironic minimalizing of facts; the effect can be
humorous and emphatic.