Reading Comprehension Vocabulary Worksheet
Student Name: ________________________________________ Date: ___________
Teacher Name: Rachael DuBois
Score: ______
Define these terms:
Aesthetic This has to do with the beauty of something rather than its usefulness.
Allegory This is a story with two or more levels of meaning--a literal level and a symbolic level--in which events, setting,
and characters are symbols for ideas or qualities.
Alliteration This is the repetition of initial consonant sounds at the beginnings of words.
Allusion This is the reference to a person, place, or event from history, literature, or religion with which a reader is likely to
be familiar.
Analogy This is a comparison based on a similarity between things that are otherwise dissimilar.
Analyze This is to separate a whole into its parts.
Archetypal Character This is a character in a work that is very typical of a certain type of person.
Archetype This is the original model for a person, place, thing, or idea appearing later in history, folklore, literature, or
myth. It is a symbol, setting, character, or theme that has universal meaning.
Argument This involves one or more reasons presented by a speaker or a writer to lead the audience or reader to a logical
conclusion.
Argument The logical, systematic presentation of reasoning and supporting evidence that proves the validity of a
statement or position.
Argumentation This is the kind of writing that tries to persuade readers to accept an author's opinions.
Assonance This is the repetition of vowel sounds followed by different consonants in two or more stressed syllables.
Author's Purpose This is the reason for creating written work.
Ballad This is a rhymed, songlike poem that tells a story , often dealing with adventure or romance.
Believability This is the ability to trust something as true or credible.
Bias This is a prejudice that is leaning toward a positive or negative judgment on something; a personal judgment or
opinion about a particular person, position, or thing.
Blank Verse This is poetry written in unrhymed iambic pentameter.
Categorical Claim This rhetorical strategy contains a statement that is an arguable interpretation of the facts. It is present
when people can disagree about the definition of the category to which the object or person belongs.
Central Idea The key point made in a written passage; the chief topic.
Character This is an individual's mental or moral quality.
Characterization This is the combination of ways that an author shows readers what a person in a literary selection is like.
Characters These are the people or animals who take part in a literary work.
Classical Literature This includes great masterpieces of the Greek, Roman, and other ancient civilizations as well as any
writing that is widely considered a model of its form.
Climax This is the part of the plot where the conflict and tension reach a peak.
Communication This is the process of sending and receiving information. This interaction between individuals includes
three categories: verbal, nonverbal, and written.
Conclusion This wraps up a piece of writing and reminds readers of the thesis.
Connotation This is the emotional feelings and associations that go beyond the dictionary definition of a word.
Consonance This is the repetition in two or more words of final consonants in stressed syllables that are preceded by
different vowel sounds.
Context This is the framework of meaning which surrounds a specific word, sentence, idea, or passage.
Cultural Elements This includes language, ideologies, beliefs, values, and norms. These elements help to shape the life of a
society.
Deductive Logic This is the process of forming a specific consequence from general observations.
Diction This is the writer's choice of words, including the vocabulary used, the appropriateness of the words, and the
vividness of the language.
Direct Characterization This is when an author reveals a person in the story characterization by giving specific descriptions.
Dramatic Irony This is when the audience or the readers know something that the characters do not know.
Dynamic Character This is a person in a fictional work that changes during the course of the action.
Editorial This is an article in a publication or a commentary on television or radio expressing the opinion of its editors,
publishers, station, or network.
Essay This is a short, nonfiction work about a particular subject.
Evaluate This is placing a value or rank on a piece of writing or speaking.
Evidence This is information that supports a generalization.
Experience This is the name for what is gathered through the general process of living, or for the process itself.
Extended Metaphor This is a sustained comparison in which a subject is written or spoken of as if it were something else.
False Syllogism This is the act of drawing the wrong conclusion from two premises.
Figurative Language This goes beyond the literal meanings of words to create special effects or feelings.
Figure Of Speech a word or phrase that is not meant to be taken literally but figuratively; synonym for figurative language
First Person This is a point of view where the narrator is a character in the story and refers to him or herself with I.
First-person Point Of View This is a point of view in which the story is told by one of the characters.
Fixed Form This means traditional verse form, or a poem that inherits from other poems certain familiar elements of
structure including an unvarying number of lines, rhyme, meter, particular themes, tones, and other elements.
Flashback This is a scene, a conversation, or an event that interrupts the present action to show something that happened
in the past.
Flat Character This is a person in a fictional work that is never fully developed by the author.
Foreshadowing This is the use of hints in written works about what will happen later.
Form This is the structure into which a piece of literature, such as a poem, is organized.
Format This is the general plan of organization of a written work.
Free Verse This is poetry written without a regular rhyme scheme, meter, or form.
Generalization This is forming a broad concept based on specific instances. Inductive reasoning
Genre This is the category or type of literature.
Haiku This is a highly compressed form of Japanese poetry that creates a brief, clear picture in order to produce an
emotional reaction in the reader. It relies upon images taken from nature and on the power of suggestion. It has three
lines of five, seven, and five syllables each.
Historical Context The setting and circumstances in which a literary work is written or an event occurs.
Historical Setting This is the political, social, cultural, and economic 'time and place' surrounding the creation of a literary
text.
Hyperbole This is extreme exaggeration used in a literary work.
Idiom This is a phrase in common use that can not be understood by literal or ordinary meanings.
Imagery This is the use of language that appeals to the five senses--touch, taste, smell, hearing, and sight.
Imagery This uses sensory images to help readers to picture a person, a place, or an event.
Implied Meaning This is a suggested, but not stated, definition.
Indirect Characterization This is when an author reveals a person in the story characterization through his/her words,
thoughts, appearance, action, or what others think or say about him/her.
Inductive Logic This is the process of making a generalization based on a specific observation.
Infer This is to get a conclusion from the facts or context; to figure out what is being implied by reading between the lines.
Inference This is reading between the lines. It is taking something that you read and putting it together with something
that you already know to make sense of what you read.
Intent This is the overriding purpose of a speech or written work; for example, to entertain, to inform,to persuade.
Internal Rhyme This occurs within a line of poetry when two words have similar ending sounds.
Interpretation This is the explanation of the significance or meaning of a work.
Irony This is the contrast between appearance and reality or what is expected and what actually happens.
Journal This is a daily autobiographical account of events and personal reactions.
Limited View This is a point of view, in which the narrator is outside the story, reveals the thoughts of only one character,
and yet refers to that characters as 'he' or 'she'.
Literary Device A type of tool or strategy to enhance an author's style
Literary Elements These are the components used together to create a fictional piece of writing.
Literary Movement Describes authors or types of literature that are loosely related due to style or subject matter.
Literary Period Literary works are often grouped into these because they share a time span. This allows analysis for traits
common to an identified time. These can include conventions, styles, themes, and philosophies. Examples include the
Romantic period and the Renaissance.
Literature This is the body of written works that includes prose and poetry.
Logic This is the reasoning used to reach a conclusion based on a set of assumptions, or it may be defined as the science
of reasoning, proof, thinking, or inference.
Lyric Poem This is a highly musical verse that expresses the observation and feelings of a single speaker.
Memoir This is an account of the personal experiences of an author.
Metaphor This is a direct comparison of two things, in which they are said to be (in some sense) the same thing.
Mood This is the feeling that an author wants readers to have while reading.
Multicultural This relates to, or includes, several cultures rather than only a mainstream culture.
Myth This is a traditional tale about gods, goddesses, heroes, and other characters.
Mythology This is a body or collection of tales belonging to a people and addressing their origin, history, deities, ancestors,
and heroes. It explains the actions of gods and goddesses or the cause of natural phenomena and includes supernatural
elements.
Narrative Poem This tells a story in verse.
Nonfiction This is factual writing that presents and explains ideas or that tells about real people, places, objects, or events.
Nonfiction This is prose written with the primary purpose of explaining, arguing, or describing in an objective,
straightforward manner. It includes such genres as 'biography' and 'autobiography'.
Omniscient This is a point of view; the narrator KNOWS EVERYTHING about the characters and events, and describes the
characters and action from outside the story.
Omniscient "Third Person __________" is a point of view in which the narrator is outside the story and knows everything
about the characters and events.
Onomatopoeia This is the use of words that sound like the noises they describe.
Opinion This is a statement that reflects a writer's belief about a topic , and it cannot be proved.
Organization In writing, this is the trait of order, structure and presentation of information; It is the writing trait which
measures logical sequencing of ideas, details, or events.
Paradox This is a statement that leads to a contradictory situation in which something seems both true and false.
Parallelism This is a persuasive technique in which an author creates a BALANCED sentence by re-using the same word
structure.
Parody This is a humorous imitation of a literary work that exaggerates or distorts the characteristic features of the
original.
Personification This is a type of figurative language in which human qualities are given to nonhuman things.
Perspective This is a writer's point of view about a particular subject, and is often influenced by their beliefs or by events in
their lives.
Persuasive Text This attempts to convince a reader to adopt a particular opinion or course of action.
Plot This is the series of events that happen in a literary work.
Poem This is an arrangement of words in verse. It sometimes rhymes, and expresses facts, emotions, or ideas in a style
more concentrated, imaginative and powerful than that of ordinary speech.
Poetry This is the third major type of literature in addition to drama and prose.
Point Of View This is the perspective from which a story is told.
Premise This is an assumption or hypothesis which begins a logical argument.
Primary Source This is an original document or firsthand account.
Pun This is a humorous word play that usually is based on several meanings of one word.
Purpose This is an author's intention, reason, or drive for writing the piece.
Reading Strategies These are the processes that good readers use before, during, and after reading to understand a text.
Repetition This is a stylistic device where the writer repeats the same word, or phrase for the purpose of emphasis.
Repetition This is a persuasive technique in which a word, phrase, or entire sentence is repeated to reinforce the speaker's
message.
Rhetorical Question This is a persuasive technique in which a writer or speaker asks a question, but no answer is required
because he implies the answer is obvious; done to convince the audience to agree with the writer/speaker's point.
Rhetorical Strategy This is a plan an author uses to effectively deliver the intended message in written work.
Rhyme This is the repetition of similar sounds at the ends of words.
Rhyme Scheme This is the regular pattern of rhyme found at the ends of lines in poems.
Rhythm This is the musical quality created by a pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables.
Round Character This is a person in a fictional work that is well-developed by the author.
Satire This is writing that uses humor to ridicule or criticize individuals, ideas, or institutions in hopes of improving them.
Sensory Details These are images help the reader see or hear or feel things. These are details that appeal to the senses.
Setting This is the time and place in which a literary work happens.
Simile This is a comparison of two unlike things using the terms "like" or "as".
Situational Irony This is when something happens that is the opposite of what was expected.
Slant Rhyme This is the use of words with similar or inexact end sounds to create rhyme.
Sonnet This is a fourteen-line lyric poem, usually written in rhymed iambic pentameter.
Sound Devices These are the sounds of words that poets use to enrich their poetry.
Speech This is a talk or public address.
Static Character This is a person in a fictional work that does not change during the course of the action.
Structure This refers to a writer's arrangement or overall design of a literary work. It is the way words, sentences, and
paragraphs are organized to create a complete work.
Style This is the way an author expresses ideas through the use of kinds of words, literary devices, and sentence structure.
Subplot This is a secondary plot in a work of literature that either explains or helps to develop the main plot.
Supporting Evidence These are the facts or details that back up a main idea, theme, or thesis.
Syllogism a logical premise(s) and the conclusion that can be drawn from it.
Symbol This is a person, place, thing, or event that represents something more than itself in a literary work.
Symbolism This is the use of objects or ideas that represent something other than themselves.
Syntax This refers to the ordering of elements in a sentence.
Text This is the main body of a piece of writing or any of the various forms in which writing exists, such as a book, a poem,
an article, or a short story.
Theme This is the message, usually about life or society, that an author wishes to convey through a literary work.
Third Person Limited Point Of View This is a point of view in which the narrator is outside the story and reveals the
thoughts of only one character, who is referred to as "he" or "she."
Tone This is the attitude that an author takes toward the audience, the subject, or a character.
Understatement This is used by a writer to show restraint or lack of emphasis in expression, as for rhetorical effect.
Universal Theme This is the central message of a story, poem, novel, or play that many readers can apply to their own
experiences, or to those of all people.
Verbal Irony This is when someone says the opposite of what he or she really means.
Viewpoint This is an expression of an opinion or standpoint.
Vivid Language This is the use of words in a work that paints a mental picture for the reader.
Literary Analysis Vocabulary Worksheet
Student Name: ________________________________________ Date: ___________
Teacher Name: Rachael DuBois
Score: ______
Define these terms:
Allegory This is a story with two or more levels of meaning--a literal level and a symbolic level--in which events, setting,
and characters are symbols for ideas or qualities.
Alliteration This is the repetition of initial consonant sounds at the beginnings of words.
Analyze This is to separate a whole into its parts.
Assonance This is the repetition of vowel sounds followed by different consonants in two or more stressed syllables.
Cause And Effect This is the relationship between two or more events in which one event brings about another.
Controlling Image An image or metaphor that dominates a literary work, especially with respect to conveying a theme.
Dramatic Irony This is when the audience or the readers know something that the characters do not know.
Evaluate This is placing a value or rank on a piece of writing or speaking.
Expository Text This is a mode of writing whose purpose is to convey information or to explain and establish the validity of
an idea in a logical, clear, and concrete manner.
Extended Metaphor This is a sustained comparison in which a subject is written or spoken of as if it were something else.
Figurative Language This goes beyond the literal meanings of words to create special effects or feelings.
Formal Language This is used by writers of scholarly books. It usually has longer sentences and a greater variety of words
than everyday speech. Slang, contractions, and jargon are avoided.
Genre This is the category or type of literature.
Historical Context The setting and circumstances in which a literary work is written or an event occurs.
Hyperbole This is extreme exaggeration used in a literary work.
Idiom This is a phrase in common use that can not be understood by literal or ordinary meanings.
Imagery This is the use of language that appeals to the five senses--touch, taste, smell, hearing, and sight.
Informal Language This is what people use in everyday speech. It usually consists of fairly short sentences and simple
vocabulary.
Interpretation This is the explanation of the significance or meaning of a work.
Irony This is the contrast between appearance and reality or what is expected and what actually happens.
Literary Period Literary works are often grouped into these because they share a time span. This allows analysis for traits
common to an identified time. These can include conventions, styles, themes, and philosophies. Examples include the
Romantic period and the Renaissance.
Logic This is the reasoning used to reach a conclusion based on a set of assumptions, or it may be defined as the science
of reasoning, proof, thinking, or inference.
Metaphor This is a direct comparison of two things, in which they are said to be (in some sense) the same thing.
Metonymy This is a figure of speech in which one word or phrase is substituted for another with which it is closely
associated.
Onomatopoeia This is the use of words that sound like the noises they describe.
Oxymoron This is something which seemingly cannot be, yet it is; a contradiction.
Paradox This is a statement that leads to a contradictory situation in which something seems both true and false.
Perspective This is a writer's point of view about a particular subject, and is often influenced by their beliefs or by events in
their lives.
Persuasive Text This attempts to convince a reader to adopt a particular opinion or course of action.
Rhetorical Strategy This is a plan an author uses to effectively deliver the intended message in written work.
Simile This is a comparison of two unlike things using the terms "like" or "as".
Situational Irony This is when something happens that is the opposite of what was expected.
Style This is the way an author expresses ideas through the use of kinds of words, literary devices, and sentence structure.
Symbol This is a person, place, thing, or event that represents something more than itself in a literary work.
Symbolism This is the use of objects or ideas that represent something other than themselves.
Synecdoche A figure of speech in which a part is used for the whole, the whole for a part, the specific for the general, the
general for the specific, or the material for the thing made from it.
Syntax This refers to the ordering of elements in a sentence.
Theme This is the message, usually about life or society, that an author wishes to convey through a literary work.
Tone This is the attitude that an author takes toward the audience, the subject, or a character.
Understatement This is used by a writer to show restraint or lack of emphasis in expression, as for rhetorical effect.
Universal Theme This is the central message of a story, poem, novel, or play that many readers can apply to their own
experiences, or to those of all people.
Verbal Irony This is when someone says the opposite of what he or she really means.
Conventions and Writing Vocabulary Worksheet
Student Name: ________________________________________ Date: ___________
Teacher Name: Rachael DuBois
Score: ______
Define these terms:
Audience This is whoever will be reading or listening to a piece of work/speech.
Author's Purpose This is the reason for creating written work.
Cognates These are words that have a common origin.
Coherence This is a quality in writing, in which ideas are presented in a clear, logical manner. Writing which lacks this
quality may be hard or impossible to understand.
Critique This is a written or spoken evaluation of what is and is not effective in a literary work.
Degrees Of Comparison Most adjectives and adverbs have three forms: the positive, the comparative, and the superlative.
The positive form is the word in its simplest form. The comparative form is used to compare two things, and the
superlative form is used to compare three or more things. The comparative and superlative forms of most one and two
syllable adjectives or adverbs are formed using the endings -er and -est. Longer adjectives and adverbs use the words
more and most or less and least.
Describing Words Adjectives and adverbs may be expressed in three ways to show comparisons. The first is the positive
degree which describes one thing. Next is the comparative degree which is used when comparing two things. This is
formed by adding "-er" to the word or by adding "more" before the word. The third degree is the superlative degree which
is used to compare three or more things. This is formed by adding "-est" to the word or by using "most" in front of the
word. Some words are irregular and do not follow these rules.
Diction This is the writer's choice of words, including the vocabulary used, the appropriateness of the words, and the
vividness of the language.
Electronic Resource This is something that can be accessed online or by computer and is used for support or to help.
Evaluate This is placing a value or rank on a piece of writing or speaking.
Figurative Language This goes beyond the literal meanings of words to create special effects or feelings.
Formal Language This is used by writers of scholarly books. It usually has longer sentences and a greater variety of words
than everyday speech. Slang, contractions, and jargon are avoided.
Grammar This is the structure of language and the rules that go with it.
Idiom This is a phrase in common use that can not be understood by literal or ordinary meanings.
Informal Language This is what people use in everyday speech. It usually consists of fairly short sentences and simple
vocabulary.
Informational Text This is a type of real-world writing that presents information that is necessary or valuable to the reader.
Inquiry This is an examination into the facts; research questioning.
Literal Meaning This is the ordinary, usual, or exact meaning of words, phrases, or passages. No figurative language or
interpretation is involved.
Literal Understanding This is the act of taking or perceiving something according to the usual, ordinary or surface meaning.
Logic This is the reasoning used to reach a conclusion based on a set of assumptions, or it may be defined as the science
of reasoning, proof, thinking, or inference.
Organization In writing, this is the trait of order, structure and presentation of information; It is the writing trait which
measures logical sequencing of ideas, details, or events.
Primary Source This is an original document or firsthand account.
Pronoun Antecedent Agreement A substitute word must always match the word it is substituting for in person, number and
gender.
Pronoun Case This is the form of a pronoun which changes to show the relationship to other words in the sentence.
Purpose This is an author's intention, reason, or drive for writing the piece.
Reference This is a source used to find information.
Research This is the process of gathering, evaluating, and organizing information.
Research Topic This is a limited topic within a general topic that can be adequately covered within the length of a particular
assignment.
Resource This is something that can be used for support or to help.
Secondary Source This is a commentary on an original document or firsthand account.
Source A person, book, document, website or record that provides information.
Source A research __________ is any material that can be used to locate information about a given topic.
Structure This refers to a writer's arrangement or overall design of a literary work. It is the way words, sentences, and
paragraphs are organized to create a complete work.
Subject Verb Agreement This is a rule that the subject and verb must be the same in number.
Transition These are words, phrases or sentences that relate by linking larger segments of writing.
Usage This is the way words and phrases are utilized correctly in written or spoken language.
Verb Form This relates to the principal parts of words that show action or states of being.