English Language Arts Grades 9-12 Literary Terms and Terminology
Allegory - a work with two levels of meaning, literal and symbolic. in such a work, most
of the characters, objects, settings, and events represent abstract qualities. The
purpose of an allegory may be to convey truths about life, to teach religious or moral
lessons, or to criticize social institutions.
Allusion - an indirect reference to a person, place, event, or literary work with which the
author believes the reader will be familiar
Analogy - a point-by-point comparison between two things for the purpose of clarifying
the less familiar of the two subjects
Analyze – to examine and break down information into small parts as to identify causes,
key factors, and possible results
Anecdote - a brief story that focuses on a single episode or event in a person’s life and
is used to illustrate a particular point
Aphorism - a brief statement, usually one sentence long, that expresses a general
opinion about life
Argumentation – a type of discourse in speech or writing that debates or simply
develops a topic in a logical way
Assess – to evaluate or judge the quality of; to evaluate
Assonance - the repetition of vowel sounds within words
Bias – to cause favoritism toward or against (especially unfairly) a person, place, thing,
or idea
Character –
 flat - a character that remains undeveloped
 round – a character that is developed
 static – a character that does not undergo change
 dynamic - a character that undergoes some transformation
Citation – verbal or written credit given for a source
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Cite – to give credit (verbal or written) to a source
Claim - an assertion of something as a fact
Counterclaim – a claim set up in opposition to another
Cliché - an overused expression that has lost its freshness, force, and appeal.
Cohesion – the property of unity in a written text or a segment of spoken discourse
Colloquialism - a term defining the diction of common, ordinary folks, especially in a
specific region or area
Comedy – light and amusing narrative in which the central characters triumph over
adversity
Compare – to examine and appraise characteristics or qualities in order to discover
similarities
Contrast – to examine and appraise characteristics or qualities in order to discover
differences
Conclusion – often referred to as the ending, the final section of a piece of writing or
speech
Connotation - the emotional response evoked by a word, in contrast to the denotation,
which is its literal meaning (see denotation)
Consonance - the repetition of consonant sounds within and at the end of words
Delineate – to analytically list with detail and precision
Denotation - a word’s literal meaning, as opposed to the emotional response it provokes
(see connotation)
Dialogue – a conversation between characters in a drama or narrative
Direct quotation – author’s words copied directly from the text and noted with quotation
marks
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Discrepancy – opposition to prevailing idea or entity
Discussion Strategies
1. Socratic seminar – regularly engage students in dialogues by responding to
questions with questions, instead of just providing answers (studyguide.org)
2. Final Word Protocol – text-based, small-group discussion strategy
3. Scored Discussion – small group of students carry on a content-related
discussion about a text, chapter, or book while classmates listen and assess their
peers discussion skills
4. Discussion Web – gives students an opportunity to share their ideas in
discussion by sharing with a partner first before explaining their position to the
whole class.
5. Reciprocal teaching – students learn the skills of summarizing, questioning,
clarifying, and predicting well enough to perform as an instructor or student
leader of content
Epilogue - the concluding section of a work
Etymology – the study of history and development of the structures, origin, and
meanings of words
Euphemism – the substitution of an agreeable or less offensive expression in place of
one that may offend or suggest something unpleasant
Expository writing or speech – writing or speech primarily intended to convey
information or to explain
Fallacious reasoning – logically unsound statements or thinking
Figurative language – language that achieves a special meaning or effect; e.g. simile,
metaphor, oxymoron
Foil - a character whose traits contrast with those of another character
Free verse - poetry that does not have regular patterns of rhyme and meter
Gothic - a genre characterized by a general mood of decay, action that is dramatically
and generally violent or otherwise disturbing, and gloomy or bleak settings
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Hyperbole - a figure of speech in which the truth is exaggerated for emphasis or
humorous effect
Imagery - the descriptive words or phrases a writer uses to re-create sensory
experiences
Inference - a conclusion reached by interpreting information
Informative/explanatory text – non-fiction writing in narrative and non-narrative form that
is intended to inform (commoncore.org)
Internal rhyme - rhyme that occurs within a line of verse
In-text citation - note made in the text that signals where the information was found
Irony- a contradiction or incongruity between appearance or expectation and reality.
o dramatic irony – contrast between what a character thinks to be true and what
reader knows to be true
o situational irony – contrast between what happens and what was expected to
happen
o verbal irony - occurs when someone states one thing and means another
Logical fallacy - a flaw in the structure of a deductive argument which renders the
argument invalid
Local color - local color realism, especially popular in the late 18th century, is a style of
writing that truthfully imitates ordinary life and brings a particular region alive by
portraying the dialects, dress, mannerisms, customs, character types, and landscapes
of that region
Memoir - a form of autobiographical writing in which a person recalls significant events
and people in his or her life
Metaphor – direct comparison of two dissimilar things
Mood – overall feeling or emotional quality that an author creates for the readers
Motivation - the reasons, either stated or implied, for a character's behavior
Narrative - a story or a telling of a story, or an account of a situation or event.
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Naturalism - an offshoot of realism, naturalism was a literary movement that originated
in France in the late 1800s. Like the realists, the naturalists sought to render common
people and ordinary life accurately. However, the naturalists emphasized how instinct
and environment affect human behavior.
Non-fiction (informational text) - prose writing that deals with real people, things,
events, and places
Nuances – a subtle difference or distinction in expression, meaning, or response
(dictionary.com)
Objective summary – summary produced without bias or opinion using textual evidence
Onomatopoeia - use of a word whose sound imitates or suggests its meaning (ex:
“buzz”)
Oxymoron - a figure of speech that combines opposite or contradictory ideas or terms
(“living death”).
Pacing – speed at which an author tells a story; movement from one point to another
(yourcharlotteschools.net)
Paradox - a statement that seems to contradict itself but may nevertheless suggest an
important truth
Parallel plots – multiple plots happening simultaneously
Parallel structure – using similar grammatical structures i.e. words, phrases, lines
Paraphrase – to restate a text passage or work, giving the meaning in another form
(dictionary.com)
Pathos - the quality in a work of literature or art that arouses the reader's feelings of pity,
sorrow, or compassion for a character
Personification - a figure of speech in which something nonhuman is given human
qualities.
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Plagiarism – the unauthorized use or close imitation of the language and thoughts of
another author and the representation of them as one’s own original work, as by not
crediting the author (dictionary.com)
Plot - the sequence of events or actions in a short story, novel, play, or narrative poem
Point of view - vantage point from which a writer tells a story.
 first person - the narrator is a character in the story. First person pronouns
include I, me, my
 third person limited - the narrator, who plays no part in story, zooms in on the
thoughts and feelings of one character
 third person omniscient - the narrator plays no part in the story but can tell us
what all the characters are thinking and feeling as well as what is happening
Premise – a proposition on which an argument is based or from which a conclusion is
drawn
Primary source - materials written or created by people who were present at events are
called primary sources.
 Letters, diaries, speeches, autobiographies, and photographs are examples of
primary sources, as are certain narrative accounts written by actual participants
or observers.
Protagonist - main character in fiction or drama.
Realism - refers to any effort to offer an accurate and detailed portrayal of real life.
 During the 19th century, realism was based on careful observations of
contemporary life, often focusing on lower and middle classes. they attempted to
represent life objectively without the sentimentality and idealism of earlier
literature.
Refrain - a word, phrase, line or group of lines repeated regularly in a poem usually at
the end of each stanza
Repetition – the return of a word, phrase, stanza form or effect in any form of literature.
Resolution - all action taking place after the climax; also known as falling action
Rhetoric – the art or science of all specialized literary uses of language in prose or
verse; the study of the effective use of language (dictionary.com)
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Rising-action - the action leading to the climax and the simultaneous increase of
tension in the plot
Rhyme - repetition of accented vowel sounds and all sounds following them in words
that are close together in a poem
Romanticism - a movement in the arts that flourished in Europe and America throughout
much of the 19th century. Romantic writers glorified nature and celebrated individuality.
Their treatment of subject was emotional rather that rational, intuitive rather than
analytic.
Satire - a literary technique in which foolish ideas or customs are ridiculed for the
purpose of improving society. Satire may be gently witty, mildly abrasive, or bitterly
critical.
Scaffolding (text complexity band)- specialized instructional supports needed in order to
best facilitate learning (about.com)
Scene – traditionally, a subdivision of an act in drama
Sensory language – use of words to describe tastes, smells, textures, sounds, and
images in order to provide a sensory experience for the reader (commoncore.org)
Seminal – strongly influencing later developments of a work, event, moment, or figure
Setting - the time and place in which the events in a short story, novel, play or narrative
poem occur
Situational irony - a contrast between what is expected to happen and what actually
does happen
Simile - a comparison made between two things through the use of a specific word or
comparison, such as like, as, than or resemble
Speaker - the voice that speaks to a reader in a poem
Stanza - group of consecutive lines that form a single unit in a poem
Stereotype - classifying people by their traits
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Stream of consciousness - a technique that was developed by modernist writers to
present the flow of a character’s seemingly unconnected thoughts, responses, and
sensations
Style - the distinctive way in which a work of literature is written. Style refers not so
much to what is said but how it is said. Word choice, sentence length, tone, imagery
and use of dialogue all contribute to a writer’s style.
Summarize – give a brief statement of the main points of something (dictionary.com)
Suspense - the uncertainty of anxiety we feel about what is going to happen next in a
story
Symbolism - the serious and relatively sustained use of symbols to represent or suggest
other ideas or things.
Syntax – the arrangement of words or phrases to create well-formed sentences
(dictionary.com)
Synthesize – combine a number of things into a coherent whole
Soliloquy - in drama, an extended speech delivered by a character alone onstage
Symbol - person, place, thing, or event that stands both for itself and for something
beyond itself
Text complexity band- see appendix A pages 2-16 of the Common Core Standards
document for additional information
Textual evidence – facts, figures, details, quotations, or other sources of data that
provide support for claims or an analysis and that can be evaluated by others
(commoncore.org)
Theme – a topic discussion or writing; a major idea or proposition broad enough to
cover the entire scope of a literary or other work of art (commoncore.org)
Tone – author’s or narrator’s attitude reflected in the style of the text (commoncore.org)
Developed by North Dakota English Language Arts Teachers
4/18/2012
Tragedy - play, novel, or other narrative, depicting serious and important events, in
which the main character comes to an unhappy end
Transcendentalism - a philosophy based on a belief that “transcendent forms” of truth
exist beyond reason and experience. The movement was led by Ralph Waldo Emerson
and included writer Henry David Thoreau.
Transition – connection (a word, phrase, clause, sentence, or entire paragraph)
between two parts of a piece of writing {and speaking} contributing to cohesion
(grammar.about.com)
Vernacular - the use of plain, everyday language
Voice - voice refers to a writer’s unique use of language that allows a reader to “hear” a
human personality in his or her writing. The elements of style that determine a writer’s
voice include sentence structure, diction, and tone. The term can be applied to the
narrator of a selection, as well as the writer.
Developed by North Dakota English Language Arts Teachers
4/18/2012