LITERARY TERMS GLOSSARY

A
1. ACTION:
A genre whose main characteristic is constant risk, fights and chases.

2. ADAGE:
Simple truth in few words.

3. ADVENTURE:
Unexpected journey with dangerous situations, and brave deeds.
4. ALLEGORY:
A hidden story in another story.

5. ALLITERATION:
A repetition of sounds.
It might involve a repetition of letters, as well.

6. ALLUSION:
A reference to something else.

7. AMBIGUITY:
Idea or situation that can be understood in more
than one way.
8. AMPLIFICATION:
It requires to extend a sentence or phrase for further explanation.

9. ANAGRAM:
When letters rearrange to create other words.

10. ANALOGY:
When two things that apparently don’t have anything in common,
are compared for a certain quality.
11. ANAPHORA:
A repetition of a certain word or phrase to add rhythm

12. ANECDOTE:
A significant short story. Sometimes it’s personal.

13. ANTAGONIST:
More or less a villain. Opposes to the main character.

14. ANTHIMERIA:
Using a word in another grammatical form.

15. ANTHROPOMORPHISM:
When objects or animals possess human traits.
16. ANTITHESIS:
The opposite of a statement, concept or idea.

17. ANTONOMOSIA:
A descriptive phrase that replaces a person’s name.

18. APORIA:
When a speaker shows doubt regarding a question.
19. APOSIOPESIS:
An incomplete or cut off sentence.

20. ARCHAISM:
Old word or expression, not in use.

21. ARCHETYPE:
A symbol or character type. Recurring in every culture.

22. ARGUMENT:
The main idea of a written work.
23. ASSONANCE:
Repetition of the same or similar vowel sounds.

24. ASYNDENTON:
Skipping one or more conjunctions in phrases.

25. AUTOBIOGRAPHY:
Self-written life story.

B
26. BATHOS:
A text that starts dramatically and ends silly.
27. BUZZWORD:
Popular phrase that is repeated.

C
28. CACOPHONY:
The use of rough sounds.

29. CAESURA:
A pause in the middle of the verse.
30. CATHARSIS:
A cleansing of the soul after tragic events.

31. CHARACTER:
The beings that are part of the story.

32. CHIASMUS:
An inverted grammatical structure.

33. CIRCUMLOCUTION:
Not talking about something directly, and talking around

34. CLICHÉ:
An overused idea or saying.
35. CLIMAX:
Most important point on a plot.

36. COHERENCE:
When an argument makes sense.

37. CONNOTATION:
The implied meaning of a word.

38. CONSONANCE:
When a consonant sound is repeated.
39. CONUNDRUM:
A dilemma. A difficult situation.

40. COMEDY:
A genre whose objective is to make the audience laugh.

D
41. DENOTATION:
The literal meaning of a word.
42. DENOUEMENT:
The tie up of the end of a story.

43. DEUS EX MACHINA:

An even, character or event that solves a problem out of the nowhere.

44. DIACOPE:
Repeating a word or phrase with other others in between.

45. DIALOGUE:
A conversation of 2 or more characters.
46. DICTION:
The unique way of phrasing of the authors.

47. DOPPELGANGER:
A main character’s twin.

48. DRAMA:
A genre that focuses with serious and/or negative emotions.

49. DYSTOPIA:
A hopeless place. Contrary to utopia.

E
50. ENJAMBMENT:
When a line is continued after breaking a line.
51. ENTHYMEME:
A logical deduction on which a premise is missing.

52. EPIGRAM:
A brief and satirical statement.

53. EPIPHANY:
A moment of enlightenment and understanding.

54. EPISTROPHE:
Repeating a phrase or word at the end of sentences.

55. EPITAPH:
A statement carved on a tombstone.
56. EPITHET:
A descriptive and glorified nickname.

57. EPONYM:
The object or person something is named after.

58. EQUIVOCATION:
Being ambiguous to hide one’s opinions.

59. ESSAY:
A form of writing divided in paragraphs.
60. ETYMOLOGY:
The study of the origin of words.

61. EUPHEMISM:
A kind and mild substitute of something harsh or rude.

62. EXCURSUS:
Deviating from the main topic.

63. EXPOSITION:
An introduction to the characters, the setting and other background info.

64. EXTENDED METAHPOR:

A lengthy metaphor.
 F
65. FAIRY TALE:
A story usually intended for kids, that features magical events.

66. FABLE:
A story with a moral or lesson.

67. FANTASY:
A genre that focuses on imaginary elements.

68. FARCE:
An irrational comedy due to misunderstandings.

69. FIGURES OF SPEECH:

A way of giving other meaning to words.
70. FLASHBACK:
When the audience is taken to a memory.

71. FOLKLORE:
The series of tales that are passed from generations to generations.
Generally, they don’t have an author.

72. FORESHADOWING:
Hints through imagery, language or symbols about the future.

G
73. GENRE:
A literature category.
 H
74. HAIKU:
A Japanese poem with 17 syllables, in 3 lines of 5-7-5 syllables.

75. HAMARTIA:
A terrible mistake that the main character makes.

76. HOMOPHONE:
Words that sound very similar with the same or different spelling.

77. HORROR:
A genre that creates a feeling of fear.
78. HYPERBATON:
An inversion in the rearrangement of words.

79. HYPERBOLE:
A figure of speaking characterized by its extreme exaggeration.

I
80. IDIOM:
A synonym for “figure of speech”.

81. IMAGERY:
The description of the metaphoric and figurative images.
82. INNUENDO:
When something is hinted as a rude or dirty joke.

83. INTERTEXTUALITY:
The inherent relationship between interconnected texts.

84. INVECTIVE:
Insulting a person through abusive language and tone.

85. IRONY:
The difference between expectations and reality.
 J
86. JARGON:
The type of language according to a certain profession.

87. JUXTAPOSITION:
Comparing two things, side by side.

K
88. KAIROS:
Doing the right thing at the right time.

L
89. LIMERICK:
A five-line poem about bodily functions.
90. LINGO:
Nonstandard language.

91. LITERARY DEVICE:

Any technique the author uses for a certain purpose.

92. LITOTES:
A positive statement said in a negative way.

M
93. MALAPROPISM:
Using incorrect words for comedic effects.
94. MAXIM:
A rule of behavior.

95. METANOIA:
Self-correction of a statement.

96. METAPHOR:
A comparison of 2 things, without the use of “like” or “as”.

97. METONYMY:
Replacing words with another related or commonly associated.

98. MNEMONIC:
A tool for remembering by associating with known things.
99. MOTIF:
Symbolic idea or image that appears recurrently.

100. MYSTERY:
A genre where something needs solving.

N
101. NARRATIVE:
A story.

102. NEMESIS:
The ultimate enemy.
103. NEOLOGISM:
A new word or phrase.

O
104. ODE:
A classical poem of high praise at an object or person.

105. ONOMATOPEIA:
A word that describes literally the sound of something.

106. OXYMORON:
Figure of speech that combinates contradicting elements.
 P
107. PALINDROME:
A word that stays the same, even when it’s spelled backwards.

108. PARABLE:
A short story with a moral or spiritual lesson.

109. PARADOX:
A contradictive statement, or it can be true and false at the same time.

110. PARALLELISM:
A parallel structure of phrases in a statement.

111. PARAPHRASE:
Rewording a text.
112. PARODY:
Ridiculing an original work.

113. PASTICHE:
A homage to an author or genre.

114. PATHETIC FALLACY:

A part of nature that is treated as if it had emotions.

115. PERIPETEIA:
A turning point in the story.
116. PERSONA:
The voice within characters.

117. PERSONIFICATION:
Giving human traits to objects as in a metaphor.

118. PLAGIARISM:
Using other person’s ideas without giving them proper credit.

119. PLATITUDE:
Repeating easily understood statements with no meaning.

120. PLEONASM:
Using many words for a message.
121. PLOT:
The sequence of events in a story.

122. POETRY:
An interplay of literature that emphasizes rhythm.

123. POLYPTOTON:
Repeating the root of a word in different ways.

124. PROLOGUE:
An introduction that provides background information.

125. PROSE:
Anything other than poetry.
126. PROTAGONIST:
A synonym for “main character”.

127. PROVERB:
Short wisdom saying that comes from general culture.

128. PUN:
A joke based on homophones.

Q
129. QUEST:
Journey in search of something.

R
130. REBUS:
A code with pictures, letters and symbols.

131. RED HERRING:

An incorrect hint.
132. REPETITION:
When words or phrases are repeated.

133. RESOLUTION:
Conclusion of a story.

134. RHETORIC:
Persuading the audience.

135. RHETORIC DEVICE:

A tool to achieve something.

136. RHETORICAL QUESTION:

A question unintended to have an answer.
137. ROMANCE:
It focuses on feelings and relationship issues.

S
138. SARCASM:
Saying the opposite of what one means.

139. SETTING:
Time and place of the story.

140. SIMILE:
A comparison using the words “like” or “as”.

141. SOLILOQUY:
A speech or monologue that no one else hears.
142. SONNET:
A fourteen-line poem, popularized by Shakespeare.

143. STANZA:
The group of lines in a poem.

144. STYLE:
The singular way of writing of the author.

145. SUBTEXT:
The implied meaning of something.

146. SURREALISM:
A bizarre reality.
147. SYMBOL:
Something that represents an idea.

148. SYNECDOCHE:
A figure of speech where an associated or related word replaces another.

149. SYNONYM:
A substitute for a word with similar meaning.

150. SYNOPSIS:
An overline of the most important things of a story.

151. TAUTOLOGY:
Explaining the same thing but with different words.
152. THEME:
The main idea of a story.

153. THRILLER:
A genre whose objective is creating tension in the audience.

154. THESIS:
The main argument on a written work, it’s a belief of the writer.

155. TONE:
The main “feeling” in a written work.
156. TROPE:
A literary device that is used many times.

157. UNDERSTATEMENT:
A situation that is presented as less serious than it really is.

158. UTOPIA:
A perfect place where everything and everyone is happy.

159. VERISIMILITUD:
Something that is very close to reality.
160. VILLAIN:
An evil character with bad intentions to cause harm.

161. WIT:
A clever type of humor that is cynical and sharp.

162. ZEUGMA:
Using a word on a sentence once but with 2 different meanings.
 Facultad de Humanidades

5to Semestre

PEM en inglés

British Literature

Ms. Ingrid Marroquin

Literary Terms Glossary

Julieta Dalila Arango Hernández

201711038

June 1st, 2019