letter(s) or shortened word used instead of a full word or phrase
For example: ‘Isn’t’ instead of ‘Is not’

the features of pronunciation which indicate the regional or the social identity of a speaker

a word which modifies a noun or a pronoun
For example: ‘The huge giant’

a word which modifies a verb, an adverb, or an adjective
For example: ‘The boy walked slowly ’

the repetition of consonant sounds
- usually at the beginning of words
For example, ‘a tapestry of talents’

the placing of opposite meanings together,
For example: ‘My only love sprung from my only hate!’

a raised comma used to denote either possession or contraction
For example: ‘Brian’s ipod’ or ‘That’s’ instead of ‘That is’.

a word that specifies whether a noun is definite or indefinite
For example: ‘ The woman’ (definite article) or ‘ A woman’ (Indefinite article)

the repetition of vowel sounds
For example, ‘Rocks wr i the back to s i ght’

the person or persons receiving a speech or piece of writing
For example: students in a classroom; M.Ps in the House of Commons; a teenage television audience etc.

is a way of showing a speaker that you are following what they are saying and understand, often through interjections
For example , ‘ I see’, yes’ , ‘ OK’ and ‘ uhu’ .

Phrases in which the end seems to finish or complete the beginning.
For example, ‘To have and to hold’

curved or square punctuation marks enclosing words inserted into a text
For example: ‘I hobbled to the shops (I had twisted me ankle that morning) so that I could buy some milk.’

upper-case letters used to indicate names, titles, and important words

a structural unit of language which is smaller than the sentence but larger than phrases or words, and which contains a finite verb

an over-used phrase or expression
For example: ‘Wish you were here.’

invites a ‘yes’ or ‘no’ answer
For example: ‘Have you seen it?’

a punctuation mark introducing more information
For example: ‘Things so look for: sharp claws, thick fur, flaring nostrils and long tail.’

a punctuation mark indicating the break between and main and subordinate clause or separating short items in a list
For example: ‘The man walked down the street, as if he was in a great hurry.’ Or ‘I need to buy apples, bananas, pasta, tomato sauce and biscuits.’

a word which connects words or other constructions
For example: ‘and’ ‘or’ ‘because’

an alphabetic element other than a vowel
For example: c, b, n, r, t etc.

the setting in which speech or writing takes place
For example: on the web; in the classroom; on television etc.

a form of speech peculiar to a district, class, or person. It refers to the distinctive use of vocabulary and grammatical structures.

the omission of words from a sentence
For example: ‘I really don’t know what to say... I guess...’

words which are used deliberately to create an emotional response in the reader/listener.
For example: ‘our brave lads’ rather than ‘the soldiers’

expressive use language in non-literal form to produce striking effect
For example: ‘As sharp as a razor’ (Simile);
‘The cat’s pyjamas’ (Metaphor)

addressing another person in a polite way to show respect
For example: ‘Sir Alan Sugar’

a punctuation mark indicating the end of a sentence
For example: ‘The man walked down the street .’

the role language plays to express ideas or attitudes
For example: to persuade; to inform; to explain etc.

the study of sentence structure, especially with reference to syntax and morphology

words with the same spelling or sound but with different meanings
For example: ‘There’/ ‘Their’/ ‘They’re’

a short horizontal mark used to connect words or syllables, or to divide words into parts
For example: ‘jet-lagged’

a person’s own personal language, the words they choose and any other features that characterise their speech and writing. Some people have distinctive features in their language; these would be part of their idiolect , their individual linguistic choices and idiosyncrasies.

addressing someone in a more casual way to show a family or equal relationship
For example: ‘Mum’ or ‘mate’

saying [or writing] one thing, whilst meaning the opposite
For example: ‘It is a truth universally acknowledged that a single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a wife.’

the use of pitch in speech to create contrast and variation

the technical language of an occupation or group
For example: ‘plenary’ (Education);
‘ISAs’ (banking)

the development and changes in a language

A question which already implies something
For example: ‘Have you stopped taking bribes?’

the vocabulary of a language, especially in dictionary form

a figure of speech in which one thing is described in terms of another
For example: ‘The cat’s pyjamas’

a branch of grammar which studies the structure of words

the person (named or unknown) who is telling a story

a word which names an object
For example: ‘cat’, ‘boy’, ‘London’ etc.

a word that sounds like the thing it describes
For example, ‘the sound of feet drumming the earth’

invites an unpredictable response
‘What do you think of it?’

a figure of speech which yokes two contradictory terms
For example: ‘fuzzy logic’

a figure of speech in which an apparent contradiction contains a truth
For example: ‘I know that I know nothing.’

a distinct passage of writing which is unified by an idea or a topic

a word, clause or even sentence which is inserted into a sentence to which it does not grammatically belong. It is usually separated by either commas, brackets or dashes.
Parenthesis usually shows an aside or interruption to the text/speech.
For example: I enjoy visiting Cornwall (even when it is raining) in September.

consists of words or phrases that have a social function and are not meant literally. When people are thanked
For example: ‘ You're welcome’ in reply is meant to show politeness and not to be interpreted as literally welcoming the person you say it to.

the study of the production, transmission, and reception of speech sounds

a study of the sounds in any language

a group of words, smaller than a clause, which forms a grammatical unit

a term from literary studies which describes the perspective or source of a piece of writing

links nouns, pronouns and phrases to other words in a sentence. The word or phrase that the preposition introduces is called the object of the preposition. A preposition usually indicates the temporal, spatial or logical relationship of its object to the rest of the sentence.
For example: ‘The book is on the table.’ ‘The book is beneath the table.’ ‘She held the book over the table.’

a word that can substitute for a noun or a noun phrase

a system of marks used to introduce pauses and interruption into writing

the regionally neutral, prestige accent of British English. It was historically used in the media, especially the BBC.

a word or phrase is repeated for deliberate effect
For example: ‘We will stand up, we will fight, we will win.’

questions which are asked for stylistic or persuasive effect and do not require an answer
For example: ‘Did this in Caesar seem ambitious?’

a form of irony that is widely used in English especially when people are being humorous. Generally the sarcastic speaker or writer means the exact opposite of the word they use, often intending to be rude or to laugh at the person the words are addressed to.

the study of the meaning of words.

a punctuation mark which can link two or more main clauses or separate longer items in a list
For example: ‘the car swerved across the road; the driver was drunk.’

a set of words which form a grammatically complete statement, usually containing a subject, verb, and object

a figure of speech in which one thing is directly likened to another , using the words ‘like’ or ‘as’
For example: ‘as sharp as a razor’

informal, non-standard vocabulary
For example: ‘innit’

the oral medium of transmission for language

the convention governing the representation of words by letters in writing systems

a dialect representing English speech and writing comprehensible to most users. It conforms to an agreed standard in grammar and vocabulary. It does not refer to the accent used to pronounce it.

the arrangement of parts or ideas in a piece of writing

aspects of writing (or speech) which have an identifiable character generally used in a positive sense to indicate
'pleasing effects'

the form of an adjective or adverb that shows which thing has that quality above or below the level of the others. It takes the definite article and short adjectives add -est and longer ones take 'most'
For example: ‘Mount Everest is the highest mountain in the world.’ Or ‘It is the most expensive restaurant I've ever been to.’

an object which represents something other than its self

a word which means (almost) the same as another
For example: ‘small’ and ‘little’

the arrangement of words to show relationships of meaning within a sentence

A question which seeks confirmation
‘That’s right, isn’t it?’

the form taken by a verb to indicate time (as in past-presentfuture)

any piece of writing or object being studied

an author's or speaker's attitude, as revealed in 'quality of voice' or
'selection of language'

groups of three, used for persuasive effect
For example: ‘Friends, Romans, countrymen’

a term expressing an action or a state of being
For example: ‘walk’, ‘run’, ‘jump’

the particular selection or types of words chosen in speech or writing

the open sounds made in speech - as
(mainly) distinct from consonants
For example: ‘a’, ‘e’, ‘i’, ‘o’, ‘u’

the use of visual symbols to represent words which act as a code for communication