Literary Term Definitions
Identify the Literary Term
Interpreting
Literature
Interpreting
Non-Fiction
Test Taking
Strategies
100
A topic of discussion or work; a major idea broad enough to cover the scope of a literary work, that may be stated or implied.
What is a theme?
100
"A love that was as deep as the sea" is an example of...
What is a simile?
100
What lesson did the protagonist learn from the resolution of the conflict? How has the character changed throughout the course of the story? What is the subject of this story? These are all questions that could help the reader identify the ___________ of the story.
What is theme?
100
The author's intent either to inform or teach someone about something, to entertain people or to persuade or convince his/her audience to do or not do something.
What is author's purpose?
100
Name two locations in a nonfiction passage that often contain answers that students overlook.
What are: Titles, Headings, Captions, Charts and/or Graphs?
200
The formation of a word from a sound associated with what is named.
What is onomatopoeia?
200
Hawthorne's use of a birthmark shaped as a hand in "The Birthmark" is an example of...
What is a symbol/symbolism?
200
'My Sorrow, when she's here with me,/Thinks these dark days of autumn rain/Are beautiful as days can be;/She loves the bare, the withered tree;/She walks the sodden pasture lane.' The central subject of the poem is A. a couple's conversation about which season each prefers B. the speaker's dislike of autumn weather C. the speaker's desire to spend time with his companion D. how sadness helps the speaker appreciate late autumn E. why the speaker's companion is looking forward to winter
What is D. how sadness helps the speaker appreciate late autumn?
200
The subtle presence of a positive or negative approach towards a topic.
What is bias?
200
When writing a constructed response or essay, the most common error that students make is to fail to address ___________________ specifically.
What is the prompt?
300
An implied or indirect reference to a person, event, or thing or to a part of another text.
What is an allusion?
300
"All the world's a stage, And all the men and women merely players They have their exits and their entrances" This is an example of....
What is a metaphor?
300
"There was a steaming mist in all the hollows, and it had roamed in its forlornness up the hill, like an evil spirit, seeking rest and finding none. A clammy and intensely cold mist, it made its slow way through the air in ripples that visibly followed and overspread one another, as the waves of an unwholesome sea might do. It was dense enough to shut out everything from the light of the coach-lamps but these its own workings, and a few yards of road; and the reek of the labouring horses steamed into it, as if they had made it all." The ___________ in the passage above can be described as mysterious, ominous and evil.
What is author's tone?
300
"The history of transportation is very long and full of changes and inventions. It starts with walking, which is not any invention; it just takes energy. People used to walk to get to other places. If you wanted to get somewhere quickly the only way to do that was to run. Actually, the first invention for transportation probably was the shoe. Centuries ago there were no shoes, people walked barefoot." The author's purpose in this excerpt is to....
What is "inform"?
300
The best process one can use to increase the likelihood of getting a multiple choice item correct is....
What is the process of elimination?
400
A form of extended metaphor, in which objects, persons, and actions in a narrative, are equated with the meanings that lie outside the narrative itself. The underlying meaning has moral, social, religious, or political significance, and characters are often personifications of abstract ideas as charity, greed, or envy.
What is an allegory?
400
"Though I was on the sheer face of a mountain, the feeling of swinging through the air was euphoric, almost like flying without wings." The descriptive terms above are examples of...
What is imagery?
400
"It was very late and everyone had left the cafe except an old man who sat in the shadow the leaves of the tree made against the electric light. In the day time the street was dusty, but at night the dew settled the dust and the old man liked to sit late because he was deaf and now at night it was quiet and he felt the difference." The author's attitude towards the subject above could be described as:
What is calm and peaceful?
400
According to the chart, what was the name of the first modern social network launched and in what year was it launced?
What is Six Degrees in 1997?
400
In order to make a valid claim, the writer of a constructed response or essay MUST include ____________ that supports their claim.
What is textual evidence?
500
a digression in the form of an address to someone not present, or to a personified object or idea, as “O Death, where is thy sting?”
What is an apostrophe?
500
In Poe’s The Fall of the House of Usher, the crumbling old mansion reflects the decaying state of both the family and the narrator’s mind. In this example, the extended metaphor is established early on and emphasized through the description of the ________.
What is setting?
500
The lines: 'She's glad her simple worsted grey/Is silver now with clinging mist.' suggest that 'she' is 'glad' because: a. the autumn rain is ending b. the mist is an aspect of autumn that pleases her c. she is dressed well for the late autumn weather d. she likes the new silver color of her clothes e. the color of the sky has become more beuatiful
What is b. the mist is an aspect of autumn that pleases her?
500
The author's purpose is to....
What is 'persuade'?
500
The most important sentence in an essay for organization, focus and content is the __________.
What is the thesis statment?
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