Quiz: Rhetorical Devices
Directions: Write the letter of the correct definition for each term. Write in capital letters.
Emotive (charged) Words
A. comparison of unlike things using “like” or “as”
Statistics
B. appeal to your ethics; identifying credibility of the author
Repetition
C. a strong piece of imagery that combines two or more senses
Alliteration
D. evoke an emotional response
Anaphora
E. reference to a historical person/event or to literature
Parallel Structure
F. repetition of a word or words at the beginning of a line
Antithesis
G. appeal to your logic; use of statistics and facts
Pattern of Three
H. comparison of unlike things without using “like” or “as”
Rhetorical Question
I. does not expect a response
Metaphor
J. listing three components within a line, paragraph, or larger unit
Simile
K. positioning one term against another for emphasis; pointing out
opposites (sometimes extremes) to make a point
Allusion
L. repeating lines or a piece of a line for effect
Synaesthesia
M. numbers/percentages that make an impression
Ethos
N. repetition of the initial sound
Pathos
O. balanced components within a line or paragraph
Logos
P. appeal to your emotions
Identify what rhetorical device is used in each of the following phrases:
1. “not judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character”
2. “an oasis of freedom and justice”
3. “I ask you to seek a common good, to defend needed reforms, and to serve your nation”
4. “barbaric slaughter”
5. “Not only does America have a serious problem, but our people have a serious problem.”
6. “You came here on a slave ship – in chains, like a horse, or a cow”
7. “in whose symbolic shadow we stand today”
8. “95% of Mrs. Boehm’s students will ace this quiz”