Junior English

QUARTER 2
Vocabulary #1

1.abate (v.) to reduce, lessen

–The rain poured down for a while, then abated.

2.abdicate (v.) to give up a position, usually one of leadership

–When he realized that the revolutionaries would surely win, the king abdicated his throne.

3.abridge 1. (v.) to cut down, shorten

–The publisher thought the dictionary was too long and abridged it.

4.abscond (v.) to sneak away and hide

–In the confusion, the super-spy absconded into the night with the secret plans.

5.accolade (n.) high praise, special distinction

–Everyone offered accolades to Sam after he won the Noble Prize.

6.accost (v.)to confront verbally

–Though Antoinette was normally quite calm, when the waiter spilled soup on her for the fourth time in 15 minutes she stood up and accosted the man.

7.accretion (n.) slow growth in size or amount

–Stalactites are formed by the accretion of minerals from the roofs of caves.

8.acquiesce (v.) to agree without protesting

–Though Mr. Correlli wanted to stay outside and work in his garage, when his wife told him that he had better come in to dinner, he acquiesced to her demands.

QUARTER 1
Vocabulary #1
nihilistic
cremation
self-destruction
consciousness
gimmick
sublimate
maudlin
implicit

Vocabulary #2
staggering
extravagant
periwinkle
decommissioned
convenience
subordinate
unintelligible
provisions

Vocabulary #3

abstinence
camaraderie
emulate
ephemeral
evanescent
fortuitous
hedonist
ostentatious

Vocabulary #4
assiduous
circuitous
convergence
divergent
extenuating
intrepid
opulent
perfidious

Vocabulary #5

1.Abrasive  - adj., rough; coarse; harsh  

2.Bilk – n., cheat; defraud  

3.Covert – adj., hidden; undercover  

4.Engender  - v., cause  

5.Hangar – v., storage area (like garage) for a plane

6.Knotty  - adj., complex; difficult to solve  

7.Nuance  - adj., something subtle; a fine shade of meaning

8.Renown – adj., fame

ACAA – Ms. Tomasik

Junior English Literary Terms

You will master and apply the following literary terms taught  throughout the 2012 – 2013 school year. I would use this as a reference guide to keep safe your English notebook while lectures and book discussions are taken in class. We will review these terms as a class and discuss their application to the novel or writing unit studied at the time.

An easy way to study is online at quizlet.com. Follow the online flashcards to every single one of these definitions. 

Allegory	a story in which the characters represent abstract qualities or ideas; a symbolic story
alliteration	the repetition of first consonant sounds in a group of words Ex. "Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers."
allusion	a reference to a fact or figure in history, literature, myth, religion, art, etc. that adds meaning to the work
antagonist	a major character who opposes the protagonist, or main character, in a play or story
archetype	a character who represents a certain type of person Ex. Daniel Boone is an archetype of the early American frontiersman
assonance	repetition of vowels sounds Ex. "Days wane away"
atmosphere	the overall feeling of a work, related to tone and mood
blank verse	unrhymed lines of poetry, in iambic pentameter
characterization	means by which a writer creates a fictional person; how a character looks, what a character says, how other characters deal with him, and what the narrator or author says about him
climax	point at which the action in a story or play reaches its emotional peak
conflict	basic element of plot; conflict can be internal or external
contrast	to explain how two things differ
couplets	a pair of rhyming lines in a poem, sometimes set off from the rest of the poem.
denouement	the tying up of loose ends in a story after the climax
dramatic monologue	speech by one character or narrator, in the presence of others; the others do not speak or interrupt; usually reveals something important about the speaker
elegy	a poem mourning the dead or about or for some other somber occasion
end rhyme	rhyming words that are at the ends of their respective lines; most typical form of rhyme we expect
epic	a long narrative poem telling the adventures of a heroic figure in grand language
fable	a stroy that illustrates a moral, often using animals as the characters Ex. "The Tortoise and the Hare"
figurative language	language that does not mean exactly what it says - uses metaphors and similes and other literary devices
first-person point of view	narrator refers to him or herself as "I"; can be plural too, for example "We went to see what the noise was..."
third-person point of view	narrator refers to characters as "he," she" or "they"
foreshadowing	technique where the autbor gives clues about something that will happen later in the story
free verse	poetry with no set meter (rhythm) or rhyme scheme
genre	a style of literature Ex. mystery, romance, western, epic, science fiction, fantasy, etc.
hyperbole	exaggeration Ex. "Dan is the funniest guy on the planet."
iambic pentameter	ten-syllable lines of poetry in which every other syllable is stressed Ex. "With eyes like stars upon the brave night air."
imagery	descriptions that make use of the senses: sight, sound, touch, taste, smell
internal rhyme	a rhyme that occurs within one line: "He's the King of Swing."
literal language	language that means exactly what it says
lyric	a type of poetry that expresses ideas or emotions
metaphor	a comparison that does not use like or as; it is direct: Ex. "I am an island"
meter	the pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables in the lines of a poem
mood	the emotional atmosphere of a work of literature
motif	a theme or pattern that recurs in a work
satire	a work that makes fun of someone or something
quatrain	a four-line stanza or poetry
protagonist	the main character in a novel, story, or play
parody	a humorous, exaggerated imitation of another work; for insight or humor
monologue	a long speech made by one character in a play or story
myth	a legend that embodies the beliefs of people and offers some explanation for natural and social phenonena
onomatopoeia	the use of words that sound like what they mean, such as "buzz"
oxymoron	a phrase made up of two seemingly opposite words: "Cruel kindness"
personification	giving an inanimate object human characteristics. Ex. "the flames reached for the child..."
plot	the action of the story
prose	writing organized into sentences and paragraphs - normal writing; NOT poetry
protagonist	the main character of a novel, story or play
pun	the use of a word in a way that plays on its different meanings. Ex. "Noticing the bunch of bananas, the gorilla went ape."
rhetorical question	a question not meant to be answered, such as "Why can't we all just get along?"
sarcasm	a form of verbal irony; language that conveys a certain idea by saying the opposite, such as if it's raining outside you say, "My, what a beautiful day."
sensory imagery	imagery that has to do with something you can see, hear, taste, smell, or fell.
irony	language that conveys a certain idea by saying the opposite
verbal irony	say one thing, but mean another
situational irony	one outcome is expected, but another happens
dramatic irony	the audience or reader knows more than the characters in the story