LITERARY TERMS
What is the central message or lesson of a story?
Theme
What is the author’s main position or viewpoint called?
Claim
“Her smile was sunshine.” What device is this?
Metaphor
What is the author’s attitude toward the subject?
Tone
What is the dictionary definition of a word?
Denotation
What type of character remains unchanged?
Static Character
What is an opposing viewpoint called?
Counterclaim
“The car coughed and sputtered down the road.” What is this?
Personification
What do we call the author’s choice of words?
Diction
What is the emotional or cultural meaning of a word?
Connotation
What is it called when an author gives hints about what will happen later?
Foreshadowing
What term describes a flaw in logic or reasoning?
Fallacy
What figure of speech uses “like” or “as” to compare?
Simile
How words and phrases are arranged in a sentence is called?
Syntax
What do we call words or phrases that smoothly link ideas?
Transitions
This device interrupts the timeline to show past events.
Flashback
Which rhetorical device uses personal stories to support a point?
Anecdote
“I’ve told you a thousand times!” is an example of what?
Hyperbole
The author’s reason for writing (inform, persuade, entertain) is called what?
Author’s purpose
What do we call the sentence that introduces the main idea of an essay?
Thesis
The emotional atmosphere of a text is called what?
Mood
What is the purpose of a rebuttal?
To refute a counterclaim
What type of expression has a culturally understood meaning, like “spill the tea”?
Idiom
When an author uses language for emotional appeal, what is that called?
Rhetoric
What do we call the use of context clues to figure out a word’s meaning?
Word analysis or context clue strategy