Literary Terms
1. Allegory- a story that has both a literal meaning and a symbolic meaning
2. Ambiguity- the effect created when words suggest two or more different
interpretations.
3. Analogy- an extended comparison of relationships
4. Anecdote-a brief, true story often used at the beginning of a speech in order to
make a specific point.
5. Antagonist- the character in direct opposition to the protagonist
6. Aphorism-a general truth or observation about life, usually stated concisely
7. Climax- the highest point of conflict in a story
8. Conflict- the central problem within a work of literature
9. Connotation- the meaning of a word derived from the various emotions and
feelings associated with a word.
10. Deductive reasoning- the use of a generalization to arrive at a specific
conclusion. (Ex All bees sting-> This bee is going to sting me)
11. Denotation- the dictionary definition of a word
12. Denouement- another term for resolution. The events that happen at the
conclusion of a story
13. Dialect- a regional or slang type of speech
14. Diction- the words an author decides to use
15. Epiphany- a moment of sudden realization
16. Epilogue- a section of writing that comes after the end of a piece of literature,
often used to tell what happened to characters after the story ended
17. Euphemism- the substitution of offensive language for milder phrases
18. External Conflict- a conflict between a character and an outside force (nature,
another character, society, etc)
19. First person POV- Point of View in which the narrator uses “I” and “me” to tell
a story in which he/she is involved
20. Figurative language- writing or speech that is not meant to be interpreted
literally
21. Flashback- an event in which a character reflects on events that have taken place
in the past
22. Foil- a character who provides a contrast to another character, not necessarily the
antagonist
23. Foreshadowing- the use of words to hint at events that will take place in the
future
24. Genre- divisions of literature. Ex- Prose, Poetry, Fiction, Drama, Non-fiction, etc.
25. Inductive Reasoning- using specific observations and prior knowledge to arrive
at a generalization (This bee stung me-> All Bees must sting)
26. Internal Conflict- conflict in which a character must battle his/her own
conscience
27. Verbal irony- when a person/character says the opposite of what he/she truly
means
28. Situational irony- irony created when an event takes place that the reader does
not expect given the circumstances or situation in the story
29. Dramatic irony- when the audience knows something the characters in the story
do not know
30. Monologue- a dramatic speech or performance made by only one character
31. Omniscient third-person point of view- Point of View in which the narrator tells
the story from outside the events using “he”, “she” “they” , but is still about to
relay the thoughts and feelings of all characters
32. Oxymoron- a figure of speech that combines two contradictory ideas (jumbo
shrimp)
33. Paradox- A statement that seems to contradictory but that actually presents some
sort of truth.
34. Parallelism- the repetition of grammatical structure used in poetry or other forms
of writing
35. Parody- humorous imitation of a person or idea used in good fun
36. Plot- the sequence of events in a work of literature
37. Limited third-person POV- Point of View in which the narrator tells the story
from outside the events using “he”, “she” “they” but only focuses on one
character from the story
38. Prose- most typical, standard form of writing
39. Protagonist-the leading character, hero, or heroine of a work of literature or other
story
40. Satire- an imitation of a person, idea, social group, etc. that is used to criticize the
ideas and values of the subject
41. Setting- the place where the action of a story takes place
42. Soliloquy- a dramatic speech in which a character talks to himself without
awareness of the audience or other characters
43. Tone- the attitude of the author towards his/her subject, character, or audience
44. Theme- the central message or meaning of a piece of literature
45. Understatement-the presentation of something as being smaller or less important
than it really is